Death and Redemption
by Isegrim Wolf
Summary: Rated M for adult language, themes and suggestions. What happens when Fox and Krystal are captured and brought before Wolf O'Donnell? What will he do with such a tasty prize? No it's not one of -those- stories, don't worry. Well not totally anyway. Read on and find out. [Wolf x Krystal]
1. Chapter 1

**Death and Redemption**

 **Rated** **M** for adult language, themes and suggestions. What happens when Fox and Krystal are captured and brought to Wolf O'Donnell? What will he do with such a tasty prize? No it's not one of -those- stories, don't worry. Well not totally anyway. Read on and find out. [Wolf x Krystal]

 _Hey everyone, Isegrim here. For me this is a bit of a renewed acquaintance with the world of writing after being involved in some collaborative efforts years (and years!) ago. Which was amazingly satisfying and I cherish the memories and friendships, some of which still endure to this day._

 _So how'd I get -here-, I hear you ask? Well, a while ago I stumbled upon a Star Fox fanfic, started reading and, long story short, couldn't stop. The Star Fox universe is so diverse and colourful that it just begs to be explored. What grips me most is the interplay between the characters and all the different interpretations the authors here have given to it. Some of the writing is really inspiring and, well, here I am. My first Star Fox fanfic. Wow._

 _Anyway, I've tried to give things my own twist and hope you like it. The characters are the ones you know and love and if I did the job right they should feel pretty familiar. Expect violence, drama, romance and surprises along the way! Constructive reviews are welcome, yeah critical ones too as long as you're polite. Or I'll send Leon after you._

 _Rated M because this site won't allow MA. There will be bad language, violence and scenes of (moderate) sexual nature. I might post more detailed versions elsewhere if there's interest for that but for now they're just for my own reading pleasure, heh._

 _Disclaimer: None of the Nintendo characters are mine, duh._

 **Chapter 1**

Some say the void between the stars is an empty wasteland, filled with nothing but, well, nothingness. But that's not correct. At all. The universe in all its glorious complexity would never settle for endless parsecs of boring vacuum.

No indeed, the expanse between the stars is filled with clouds of interstellar dust and tiny particles that make up the solar winds. And planets, moons, asteroids. Add to that countless hydrogen atoms which form parsec-wide clouds that, under the influence of heat and radiation, light up as spectacular nebulae.

But that's not all, far from it. Besides nebulae and interstellar dust there are also myriad bits of rubble running in size from small moons to tiny grains of sand. Then there's radiowaves, infrared and x-rays all echoing through space, in addition to beams of visible light. There's radiation bursting forth from solar flares and from the dying hearts of collapsing stars. Not to mention the more esoteric and elusive phenomena such as black holes and the ghostly almost-presence of dark matter and dark energy.

It's beautiful, awe-inspiring, humbling even. And sometimes the universe goes one-up and does something really special, and creates Life.

That's pretty much when everything starts going to shit.

##########

The ebon darkness of space was being ripped apart by violent strobes of multicoloured laser fire, the stars' subdued light paling in comparison to the bright linear flashes. Now and again fierce explosions bloomed, illuminating the small fighter craft that were engaged in harsh personal dances of life and death. Skill and chance danced in time with the fighters' movements and for some the dance ended quickly, while others soared on to confront new adversaries.

The dogfight had been going on for some time and had coalesced into classic furballs of spacial combat, fighters chasing after each other in tight arcs and jinking left and right as pilots hunted for superior position and a decisive firing solution.

In the midst of the hectic maelstrom four fighters were holding their own against a seemingly overwhelming number of enemies, dishing out vast amounts of death and destruction despite being heavily outnumbered. Their base of operations and overwatch cruiser, the Great Fox, was equally engaged, double front cannon lancing merciless spikes of high energy into the enemy forces.

Star Fox were living up to their reputation, once again. But even the best mercenary team had its limits and, opposed by such a huge force it was only a matter of time before their battle plan began to unravel.

"Fox! I'm going down!"

Sweat beaded on her brow as Krystal tried everything to make her Arwing respond. But it was no use, her G-diffusers were toast and the main engine was stuck on full thrust, all fly-by-wire contact with her controls having been severed by the impacts of enemy fire.

"Krystal, hang on, I'm almost on you!"

Fox. Turning her head she could see that the three fighters that had been pummeling her with laserfire were now nothing more than expanding clouds of debris as Fox's blue and silver Arwing tore through their remains and rapidly closed the distance to her doomed ship. His voice rang in her ears.

"Try and reroute power to your diffusers!"

The blue-furred vixen let out a frustrated growl. "I've tried that! I've tried EVERYTHING!" Taking a deep breath she continued more calmly. "My boards have gone dark, Fox. Digitals are gone, analog indicators are all in the red except for life-support and hydraulics." She glanced at an open panel, wires and connectors hanging out. "I've tried manually rerouting flight controls and jumpstarting the diffusers, nothing. Pulsing power from life-support to essential flight systems didn't work either." There wasn't anything she hadn't tried, she was a good pilot dammit, she knew her stuff.

They'd taken a gamble and now she was going to pay for it. Fichina's atmosphere was already tugging on her Arwing's airframe, the leading edges of its wings starting to glow cherry-red. Any more punishment and her ship would start to disintegrate. And that would be that.

Fox knew it too. "No no no... Krys, th-this can't be happening.." It was as close to panic she'd ever hear Fox come, his voice tight with fear, matching the mental waves of anxiety she was picking up.

More mental flashes reached her, his ship must be really close now for her to be able to pick them up, images, feelings, Fox was unconsciously broadcasting hard. A large part had to with his anxiety, he was desperate to save her, no matter what, she got that clearly. Another part was dominated by lightning fast assessments, a rapid sequence of questions and answers, of options and the weighing of each one, almost too fast to follow. How to slow her ship down. Lasers? No not the lasers, her Arwing can't take it, structural integrity would fail! Charged bomb? Oh fuck no don't be an idiot Fox! Use his ship to physically push her fighter into a safer trajectory? Maybe. But not with her engine on full thrust, that would lead to disaster. Damndamndamn she can't die she can't die she can't die like this I've got to do SOMETHING!

"Hold on tight! I'm going to try something!"

Krystal barely had time to brace herself before a giant boot kicked her in the ass. A cry of pain escaped her lips as her breath was violently knocked out of her lungs and she almost passed out from the brutal impact. She managed a gasped "F-Fox, what the hell did you-...?" before her ship tumbled into a pitched roll and everything went black.

##########

"Peppy! We're going down."

"Fox? We're being swarmed here, get back!"

Fox's voice sounded strained, as if he were fighting to keep control of his fighter. But there was a calmness to it as well, a fierce determination. Peppy felt a chill premonition, which got confirmed by Fox's next words. "Not happening old man. Krystal's in a bad way and I'm stabilizing what's left of her ship. Not much left of my poor Arwing either, I used it to ram her main thruster, hahah. Next stop is Fichina! Send a rescue team if you can."

The older hare protested. "Fox, don't be a fool, this sector is rife with Andross' forces, you saw what we're up against! A rescue team would never reach you in time!"

Fox grimaced. Yeah, no kidding. They bit off way more than they could chew, that's for sure... and were now paying the price for it. And it was all his fault too. If he hadn't been so damn eager to please Pepper and turn a fat profit he might have stopped to think, five wings of fighters, backed up by at least two capital ships and a handful of cruisers, had he really been that blind? Oh yes. I'm THE Fox McCloud, son of THE James McCloud, let's do this, it'll be a cakewalk! Ghahhhh. If anything, he deserved to pay for his unforgivable lack of common sense.

"I'm not letting Krystal die." In his mind, he added the word 'alone'. "This is the way it's going to be, Peppy. Now get out of here!"

"Fox, you can still make it, I can bring the Great Fox close enough to- "

"Fox out."

Peppy was left staring at his silent controls.

##########

Consciousness was slow to return. She was cold, so bitterly cold and every part of her body hurt something fierce. The vixen grit her teeth against a mewl of pain and forcibly slowed her breathing. Focus. Calm. Deep slow breaths... that's it, that's it, remember your training, let your mind settle, find your center, become grounded... just like in the old days. Cerinia. Soothing memories came flooding in, of her life on her home planet, of her life before... Fox.

Her eyes snapped open. Fox!

She was in twilight, the Arwing's cockpit shrouded in near-darkness. The atmosphere reeked of burnt electronics and the lights were out. Her head was pounding and there was something wrong with her orientation. She must have a concussion. Fair enough, at least she was alive. Fumbling with her harness' release she struggled to free herself and finally succeeded. The five-point restraint snapped open and she fell UP, landing hard against the glassteel canopy!

Krystal muttered words a highborn lady would never use in polite company.

"$# %! Upside down, of course I was hanging upside-down. Ghah stupid!"

Groaning, she sat back on her heels and took stock of her situation. Okay, her Arwing had apparently flipped during the crash and had landed belly-up, its cockpit buried in snow. Fine, she could deal with that. It must still be day or there'd be no light seeping down through the snow so she couldn't be buried too deep either. Double good. She was alive, no broken bones and life support had kept the cockpit filled with enough oxygen to breathe. No smoke, no fire, no toxic fuel leaks, check. Emergency pack should be behind the seat, check.

Communications...

A quick test didn't leave any doubts. Dead. Her scouter lay shattered at her feet and the ship's systems were fried. Damn.

She had to get out and find Fox. They were stranded in enemy territory and it wouldn't be long before Andross' thugs came to investigate. If they could make it away from the crashed ships, maybe set them on fire to mask the absence of bodies, they'd buy some time and might have a chance to escape and hide until help arrived. Not much of a chance but better than nothing.

Grabbing the emergency pack she got to work.

##########

Fox was panting hard when he at last reached Krystal's Arwing, his breaths huffing clouds of white. It hadn't been difficult to spot the wreckage from afar, all he had to do was follow the dark plume of smoke rising from the otherwise pristine arctic whiteness that was Fichina.

Wading through the hip-deep snow in lung-burning subzero temperatures was hell though, his legs were trembling and there were dark spots at the edge of his vision by the time he finally made it to the crash site. But he hadn't once considered slowing down, he HAD to push on, Krystal was trapped in there! She could be hurt, she could be... worse. His muzzle twisted in a pained grimace, he didn't dare allow himself to consider that possibility.

Falling to his knees next to the Arwing's damaged fuselage he started to frantically dig. The small shovel he'd taken from his emergency pack made fast work of the loose snow until he hit a more compacted layer where the Arwing's crash had compressed the snow to near-ice density. Growling, he put his back into it and before long he'd made a hole as deep as he was tall. There! He saw the edge of the canopy!

He banged a fist against the fuselage. "Krys! Can you hear me!"

He listened.. and his heart skipped a beat when he heard a muffled reply!

With renewed vigour he got back to digging, laughing and sobbing at the same time. She was alive! Deeper, dig, dig, there, he could see her hand against the glass!

"Are you hurt?" he shouted, getting down on all fours to lay one furred ear against the canopy. He couldn't make out words but her reply sounded reassuring and he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. She was alive and okay!

"Get back! I'm going to breach the canopy!"

He grabbed his blaster and took careful aim, then fired one, two, three shots on wide aperture, clearing a substantial hole, big enough for Krystal to crawl through. Which she did, once she was sure he'd stopped firing.

"Fox! Oh my word you're alright!" she cried and added a hug, wrapping her arms around the vulpine's waist, head pressed against his chest. Fox returned the gesture, doing some wrapping of his own.

The vixen then pulled out of the embrace, leaned back and slapped him across the muzzle. Hard.

"And don't you EVER do that again, Fox McCloud!"

When his head stopped spinning Fox could see how angry she was, fists balled at her sides, body trembling, teartracks matting the soft blue fur of her cheeks.

"Wh-what the fhuh..?"

"You could have DIED, you idiot!"

"Krystal, I-"

"Don't you 'Krystal' me, mister! I'm a fighter pilot dammit, a mercenary, a professional and a damned good one too! I know the risks! Dying would have been bad, sure, but dragging YOU down with me would have weighed on my soul forever!"

Suddenly all the fight went out of the vixen. She leaned back against the wreck of her ship, shoulders slumped, head down. In a small voice she added "Please, Fox... don't keep doing this to me..."

He didn't know what to say to that.

"Krys... we need to get out of this hole and move, NOW. C'mon. I'll.. we'll talk later, alright?"

She squared her shoulders and pushed off from the wreck after a quick wipe of face and nose, then bent down to grab her emergency pack, all business again. "Sure, whatever. You're right, let's go."

Climbing out of the hole wasn't too difficult. Slipping and sliding it only took them a moment to crawl up and over the edge, to stand in the soft snow which reached to their knees. An unwelcome surprise awaited them though. Instead of the empty wasteland of Fichina they were greeted by the sight of four pairs of boots. Bloodred uniforms. Grim expressions under red visors. And four blaster carbines aimed straight at their hearts.

"Told you he'd get her out. Saves us a shitload of work, hahah."

The lead ape smirked.

"The boss is gonna love this."


	2. Chapter 2

Death and Redemption

Chapter 2

 _Hi everybody. I'm back with the next installment of the story, hope you like it!_

 _################_

"Shuttle Alpha 31-402, you are cleared to land in bay 17. Security detail is standing by as requested."

"Copy that Control, shuttle out."

In the shuttle's cargo hold Fox and Krystal couldn't do much more than wait. Their guards were taking no chances and had shackled their wrists, then shoved them into a large steel crate with steel bars, firmly locking them in. And there they'd been, pressed against eachother in the cramped space for the past three hours.

"I'm pretty sure they're taking us to Sargasso."

Fox's voice was tense but quiet. If they kept their voices down the noise of the shuttle's engines would drown out most of their talk and give them a measure of privacy. The guards were watching them though, two alligators with red visors and unreadable expressions, armed with carbines. So they had to be careful.

Head tilted to the side, Krystal asked "Why's that?"

"You felt the course changes, Krys. The only place where a ship has to zig and zag that often is the Meteo asteroid belt. And if we're headed through Meteo, that means we're being taken to Sargasso. And THAT means..." The vulpine's voice trailed off on a worried note. Krystal finished his sentence.

"Wolf."

Fox turned in the small cramped space, moving to face her, bodies pressed together, almost nose to nose. She could feel the waves of worry coming off of him and had noticed the sharp spike when she mentioned Wolf's name. Truth be told she wasn't doing much better, their situation was very, very dire and she feared for their future.

"Krys, listen to me." She gazed into Fox's emerald eyes. He put his hands on her shoulders, expression deadly serious."If we get ANY chance at escape, take it. No matter how slim, take it, you got that?" and as she gave a small nod he continued ".. hell, I don't just mean us, but I mean you too. If you see an opportunity to escape, go for it Krys! Run and don't look back, do you understand?"

His words hit her hard. What was he saying, that she should leave him behind if she got the chance, that she should abandon him? Escape on her own? She felt tears well in her eyes. Tears of sadness, of frustration, and anger. And then she pulled it all together and set her jaw, expression hardening. "Fox, I'm not going without you. And that's that." She took a breath. "We'll find a way. You'll see, don't lose faith."

Fox didn't seem to hear and gave her a small shake, voice rising "Krystal, this is -Wolf- we're talking about! He'll.. he'll.."

She saw the despair in his eyes, felt it in his mind. She'd been with Fox for more almost two years now and knew he could be high-strung and sometimes even emotional. But that was part of what she loved about him, his ability to care, to feel. And his willingness to put others' welfare before his own. Fox was a genuine hero and wouldn't hesitate to put himself in harm's way for the greater good. That was his strength, and also his weakness.

She'd seen him determined, resolute, take-charge... and she'd seen his vulnerable side, his pain when things went wrong... and his tentative behaviour when he was around her, his shyness when it came to matters of the heart.

She thought she knew him well. But this was new.

He was tense and anxious and from what she could pick up from his mind and from his expression, mostly concerned about what would happen to -her-. That wasn't new, she thought with a small inner grimace. Underneath it though she picked up a deeper emotion, a dark feeling, one of utter dread. It took her a few moments to identify what it exactly was and when she did, her blood ran cold.

Fox was afraid.

The realisation was like a slap to the face. Fox, her Fox, afraid?

Digging deeper she found its origin. Of course.

Now that she'd pieced it together she could see it in Fox' eyes. Her tears welled again and threatened to spill over. Fox must really believe that their chances of survival were low. He was losing hope and seeing that in his candid green eyes was tragic, nothing should ever defeat Fox's optimism, nothing should ever weaken his unshakable belief that Good would always triumph over Evil! But she saw it ebbing away, could feel his conviction evaporating... and it tore at her heart. No, no, not her Fox. Not him.

She aimed a silent snarl at Wolf. Bastard.

"Oh Fox..."

Something in Krystal's tone of voice snapped Fox out of his funk. He saw the hurt and concern on the vixen's face and, even though he didn't fully understand the underlying reason for her sudden emotional state, her tone bypassed his brain and reached straight into his heart.

Their muzzles were only inches apart. Closing the distance was so easy.. and part of his mind wondered why it had been so difficult before. It seemed so silly now. This was the most natural thing ever.

Leaning forward he pressed a soft kiss to the vixen's lips. And was rewarded with a warm kiss back, arms slipping around him and pulling him close into a tight, warm embrace.

They stayed that way until the shuttle's landing at Sargasso, finding solace in eachothers' arms.

 _################_

Sargasso. Corneria's wiki labels it as the Sargasso Space Zone and describes it as an illegal space colony within the rocky Meteo asteroid belt, used mainly as a staging area for Andross' space armada. The wiki file goes on to elaborate that the space station is home to gangs of thugs and criminals under the authority of Wolf O'Donnell.

The reality that Fox and Krystal were confronted with was somewhat different. They were hustled at gunpoint into a small wheeled assault carrier, doors slammed shut and the driver accelerated into a small tunnel, swiftly leaving the hangar area behind them. They passed airlocks and blast doors, finally emerging into a more open area of the station and slowing down. The bare gray metal military feel of the landing bay immediately disappeared and made way for a surprisingly colourful collection of shops and people, most dressed in civilian garb and going about their business as if this were some urban marketplace on Zoness or even Corneria itself.

Sure there were soldiers in view and stylized propaganda posters of Andross' face plastered here and there, but the dread red uniforms were a stark minority and the posters were mostly drowned out by other signs and banners, offering all sorts of wares and services. As the vehicle had to slow to pass through the masses, the captive vulpines had time to stare out of the one-way mirrored plasteel and take in the sights. Of course there were bars, weapons' shops and the occasional brothel that fit the image they had of a thieves' hideout, but what surprised them were the utterly mundane shops, a grocery store, a hairdresser, an apothecary. Even a dentist. It was all so ordinary.

And the people. Most looked like a very rough crowd indeed, sure, but there were even -families-! They saw a few small children with their parents and even spotted a school and a daycare center in passing. Everything was small and cramped, space coming at a premium in a station like this, but still. The place was -alive- in a way they hadn't expected.

"Fox... did you see that?"

"What, the burger joint?" His tummy rumbled and he shot Krystal an apologetic look.

"No Fox. The children, there are children here!" The vixen had her muzzle and both hands pressed to the glass, an expression of wonder on her face. Fox, leaning in next to her, was simply confused.

"Yeah that's damn weird. Maybe Wolf has a slave trade set up and they're..."

The words died in his mouth as he caught a withering stare from Krystal.

"Uh. Sorry. They um, look pretty happy."

Her eyes narrowed, not falling for his cheesy smile. " And that's my point, Fox. What's going on here?"

"Ehhh.." he faltered, searching for words. "Lots of people. Getting together. They're bound to.. eh, y'know, so there will be kids, right?"

Krystal grimaced to herself, Fox was missing the point, as usual. His blush was cute though.

"Yes Fox, of course." She eyed the guards sitting across from them in the small enclosed cabin, silently watching. The two alligators had dissappeared, replaced by two apes who, unless she was mistaken, had been among the four who had originally captured them on Fichina.

She cleared her throat.

"Excuse me. We're curious and umm, this might be the last time we have a chance to ask, so.. why are there children on a military space station?"

The two apes briefly looked at eachother until one shrugged and the other replied.

"Guess it can't hurt. Lord O'Donnell has seen fit to open the place up."

"Open up? What do you mean by that..?" Fox kept his mouth shut, Krystal was turning on the charm and it seemed to be working. Not surprisingly, he thought. When Krystal wanted something, she got it.

The lead ape grimaced, scratching his cheek "It's stupid if you ask me. And no idea what emperor Andross thinks of it. But Wol- er, Lord O'Donnell seems to be getting away with it."

Not getting the answers she wanted, Krystal pressed the point. "Yes, I understand but.. WHAT exactly is he getting away with..?"

"Oh. Trader clans. Place is full of em, he's turned Sargasso into one big trading station, has even kicked most pirates out. Us military have been crowded into the northwest quadrant and all the rest is, well, y'see? Like -this-." he waved a hairy hand "Fucking civilians."

Krystal cut a glance at Fox. "Um, why would he do that?"

The ape barked a laugh. "Oh haw! That one's easy. Filling his pockets, he is! Lord O'Donnell takes a big cut off've every shady deal that gets done here, the guy must be swimming in gold lylats by now!"

The other guard nudged his partner. "And tail!" at which they both burst out laughing. From there it went downhill, the guards' talk turning to topics common to soldiers everywhere. Krystal's ears burned with a deep crimson blush and she crossed her arms over her chest, leaning back into her seat, eyes closed. Fox wisely kept his muzzle shut.

"Hahahah! Yeah, and did you hear the one about the Cornerian and the hot dog bun?"

Howls of laughter. Krystal groaned.

 _################_

Arnis K'thar was one of those people that liked to think of themselves as indispensable to the smooth workings of any operation. He wasn't a man of action like his employer but that didn't bother him a bit. He was fully aware that he filled an important niche in Sargasso's infrastructure and that without his skills things would not be able to run even half as smoothly as they did. He was the oil in the machine. He knew his worth, he knew exactly what his strengths were. And so did Wolf O'Donnell.

"Arnis!"

The otter immediately raised his gaze from his screens and stood up from behind the desk he occupied in an alcove adjacent to his employer's office. With decisive, brisk movements he walked the few paces separating himself from the lupine's desk, back straight, all business.

His suit, as always, was impeccable, made of expensive dark fabric, subtly striped, its deep chocolate hue chosen to complement his natural auburn-and-cream fur colouring. Clean crisp white shirt for contrast, offset by a bold-coloured tie and a silver pin. In the crook of his left arm he cradled a datapad that never left his side, a stylus in his right hand, poised to make notes or tap commands. An executive headset completed his office-warrior's attire, the small black bar attached to his left ear. His voice, when he spoke, was clipped and precise.

"Yes sir?"

The wolf didn't look up from his own large datapad. It was a few hours before noon, Sargasso time, and he was savouring his second cup of black-as-sin coffee, leaned back in his chair, combat boots on the desk.

"Has the report on the pump and dump scam arrived yet?" he growled.

Over time, Arnis had developed a grudging respect for his employer. For all that he was a rough mercenary and more used to solving issues with a blaster rather than with a computer or a datapad, Wolf had proven himself a sharp businessman and a strong leader of the Sargasso community. He'd built both up from nothing, transforming the space station from a military and pirate outpost into something much more worthwhile. He knew how to manage a diverse group of rogues with very different interests and morals, knew how to make them cooperate and compromise, understood trade dynamics and the underlying powerplay of the main trade families, the mercenary groups and, of course, Andross. He balanced them all against eachother and it worked. It actually worked.

If there was one thing he'd learned, it was that Wolf O'Donnell was not to be underestimated.

Take this latest example. They had both been pouring through trade data as they did every week. They'd been looking at a large spreadsheet listing small-trade transactions when Wolf had frowned and had pointed at a series of data. "That doesn't feel right. Supply and demand shouldn't fluctuate that much for this kinda stuff, and fuck, look at the latest price, that's just ridiculous!". Arnis had looked and, sure enough, there was quite a variation. But wasn't that just the way market forces worked?

Wolf was adamant though. "This smells. Get somebody to check it out."

And he had.

The report's conclusions were clear. Somebody had indeed been manipulating trade information to hype a certain type of product and artificially 'pump' the price up. The scam had worked and a few major trade families had bought into the lie, snapping up the goods that the scammer conveniently 'dumped' against the inflated prices, thinking to make a profit. But instead it was the scammer who profited from the deal.

"Yes sir. I was just now going over the report's conclusions. You were correct. Our investigator found clear signs of manipulation."

Wolf growled. "Who?"

Arnis consulted his datapad. "Captain Aloysius Hammins sir."

"Hammins again huh? That idiot." Wolf sat up and slammed a fist on his desk. "Dammit! We want fair trade here, none of that sneaky bullshit. Doesn't Hammins understand that once the families catch on, his blood will be staining the streets?"

Wolf stood up and started pacing, expression stormy, gray tail lashing in agitation.

"Arrange a meeting with Hammins. Tell him I'm fucking unhappy with him and that he'd better have an offer that will make me happy again. Meanwhile, fine his ass for unethical trading practises and publish my decision on the trade-feeds, as usual. See how he fucking likes THAT."

"Yes sir, at once."

"Also, inform the families involved that I'm handling the matter. And that they will be compensated for their losses."

"Yes sir."

Wolf silently snarled. Hammins was going to bleed for this.

Arnis, meanwhile, quietly thought to himself that Wolf had probably just saved Hammins' life. The financial penalties and the damage to the captain's trader reputation would hurt, for sure, but not nearly as much as the knife in the back he would have gotten when the families found out that they had been swindled.

As he turned away to see to Wolf's orders, a priority message flashed onto his datapad, clamoring for his attention. Pausing in mid-step he read its contents and froze. He almost lost his composure but managed to hold it together. Then quickly tapped a command, sending the message to Wolf's tablet.

Turning back, his voice held only a businesslike urgency.

"Sir, priority message. You will want to read this, immediately."

Arching a brow, Wolf walked back to his desk and snapped up his datapad. "Oh really?" and tapped the red-flagged message.

He blinked, once.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me."


	3. Chapter 3

Death and Redemption

Chapter 3

 _Hi everybody, sorry ik took me so long to come up with the next chapter. I kinda forgot how hard it can be sometimes to overcome writer's block. Ugh._

 _But hey! Here it is, read, enjoy! And let me know what you think!_

* * *

Wolf stood stock-still, thinking.

"How long till they dock?"

"Six minutes sir."

"Right." Wolf nodded to himself, once. "Have them brought straight here. Order a total lockdown of the station. No ships in or out. Also shut down all communications, full blackout, I want this station dark within the hour! Those Cornerian dogs will want their posterboy back. Expect hostile forces, I want the crews on full alert and all stand-off defenses manned around the clock."

"Yes sir."

Arnis fought to hide his surprise. He had expected his volatile employer to rejoice at his enemy's capture, to gloat, to exuberantly revel in Fox McCloud's capture! Heck, he'd half expected Wolf to declare a national holiday and order him to break out the good champagne to celebrate this ultimate victory. But instead Wolf had slipped into a scary alert state, highly focused, as if this were some kind of crisis he had to manage.

"Order Kraille to undock his ships and deploy as overwatch, fighters ready to go. Make an appointment for this afternoon, I'll brief him then."

Arnis bit his lip. Technically Wolf had no authority to order Andross' forces about like that, and certainly not a commander who was in fact related to the Emperor himself. This was a very dangerous game the lupine was playing, he was arguably overstepping his mandate and would catch the backlash for that if he wasn't careful. Arnis would have to be very circumspect in relaying Wolf's orders lest he offend the commander, who was not known for his patience.

But he didn't comment and just nodded. "Noted."

Wolf started pacing in front of his desk, bushy gray tail swishing in agitation.

"Cancel my other appointments. Tell Leon and Panther to get the hell over here, stat! And call Andrew, I want him on stand-by in a stealth transport, awaiting my orders. Got that?"

Stealth transports were small personnel carriers designed for covert insertion of special operatives, either for boots-on-the-ground planetary missions or for boarding strikes against capital ships and large space stations. The stealth transports had a very low reflection and signals profile and were equipped with a rudimentary form of active cloaking, making them nigh invisible to normal scans. Sargasso had three of them. Arnis carefully hid his surprise, why would Wolf need something like that?

"Yes sir."

Wolf ran a hand down his muzzle, weighing options, running through viable tactics and combining them to fit into a broader strategy. He mentally cursed, godsdammit you stupid fox, could you have picked a worse moment to get your sorry ass captured? As usual Corneria's favourite mercenary and CDF lapdog had no damn clue what he was screwing up, nearly half a year of meticulous planning down the fucking drain! Wolf fought to control his rage.

"Move the station." he growled.

Arnis could only stare.

"Wh- what, sir?" Arnis' eyes were wide, surely Wolf didn't mean what he thought he meant?

Wolf shot a baleful glare at his assistant. "Move the fucking station. Deeper into Meteo. Including all first-tier relay beacons. Fire up the engines and relocate. Sargasso needs to disappear, understand?"

Arnis was in shock. But Wolf didn't give him time to recover.

"And get a media team organized. I want every moment of Fox McCloud's capture recorded, saved and edited. Use mobile units and the station's security feeds, that should give you enough footage. We're going to send Corneria a message they won't forget, one that'll go down in the history books!"

The mustelid only had time for a nod before the next instructions came flying his way.

"Also order a full lockdown on trade exchange, all stocks are to be considered frozen until further notice."

What?

"Eh, sir, surely.."

"I know, the captains will howl bloody murder but I don't care." Wolf waved an arm to emphasize his point. "If things get rough we're going to need those supplies! Inform them that I'll cover their losses, within reason. They can send their petitions straight to you."

Arnis managed a dazed "Yes sir." as more orders were barked at him. His stylus flew over his datapad, fighting to keep up. This was all going so fast and Arnis didn't understand the reason behind most of his employer's orders. Why was all this necessary, what was Wolf not telling him?

"And tell the captains that if anyone tries to screw me over I'll have their balls on my desk as ornamental paperweights!"

It was a sign of Arnis' state of mind that he dared make an off-color joke.

"And the lady captains, sir?"

That just earned him a dark scowl.

"Don't be a smartass, Arnis."

################

Their transport made a sharp right turn through a black and yellow edged blast door to enter a small gray chamber, its walls revealing the bare plassteel of the station's bones. The blast door closed as soon as the vehicle was through and shut out the vibrant bustle of the world outside, leaving them in semi-darkness. A sharp tap on the brakes and they stood still.

"Out."

Fox and Krystal were shoved out the back and hustled through a doorway into a very small room, which turned out to be an elevator. One guard activated a keypad and placed his simian hand on a glass plate while the other spoke into his comm, all the while keeping a wary eye on the prisoners and a finger on the trigger. There were no other controls in the elevator. A small dome camera in the top-right corner watched their every move. Krystal couldn't see anything that they could use to their advantage, nothing. Damn.

"We're on our way up."

The plate lit green and up they went. Fox shot her a tense look, to which she could only reply with a small shrug and a worried expression of her own. This was so not good. They were in deep trouble and she was fully aware that their fates would most likely be decided in the minutes to come. Krystal managed a weak smile but that only seemed to increase Fox's anxiety. She could feel it coming off him now, in waves, like a slowly throbbing mental pain. It didn't do much to allay her own feelings of impending doom. Her heart was in her throat.

The ride upwards seemed to take an eternity.

At long last the elevator reached its final destination and dinged to a stop. The doors slid open with a soft mechanical sigh to reveal two more armed guards, canines this time, in full combat gear and standing to either side of a two-part blast door similar to the one they'd gone through earlier, albeit smaller. The antechamber they entered was well-lit but cramped and unadorned. There were no other exits, she recognized it as a classic kill-box. Wolf took his security seriously.

"In you go."

The guards' carbines poked into their backs as the heavy doors slid apart to reveal Wolf's office. And office it was, at least twenty feet deep of expensive-looking wall to wall cream carpet, with an oval boardroom table to the right of the entrance, eight black leather seats surrounding a state of the art holo display, currently showing a slowly rotating three-dimensional image of Sargasso as seen from space. Opposite the table, the left wall was mostly covered by a large rectangular traditional display, now dark and inactive. A few feet further along the wall was a door, closed.

Deeper towards the back the office was split in two areas, most of the right back corner taken up by an alcove with a desk set at right angles to the entrance. Behind the alcove was a door, also closed. The left area was home to Wolf's desk, facing them, while the wall behind the desk was spanned by a window which gave a view onto the inside of Sargasso and probably the ground level far below.

Krystal subconsciously took all this in in a flash, her training forcing her to take note of all possible escape routes.

But her conscious attention was focused on the tall gray lupine at the end of the office, casually leaned against the edge of his desk, a comm held to one ear. Tall, broad of shoulder, dark gray facial fur topped by an off-white messy mohawk. The black signature eyepatch was in place, as were the typical fingerless leather gloves. Followed by black combat pants and boots, cinched closed at the waist by an equally dark belt from which hung a low-slung heavy blaster, resting snug against the wolf's right thigh.

She sensed a theme here, she wryly thought to herself and suppressed a giggle, digging claws into her arm to stop her nerves from unraveling. The adrenalin was making it hard to think straight. Keep it together girl, breathe... and pay attention. Which she did, finishing her examination. Instead of the customary body armour and spiked shoulder pads, the rival mercenary leader was simply wearing a dark purple shirt, opened at the throat to expose a tuft of light gray chestfur.

A shorter figure stood a few paces to Wolf's left, a non-combatant by the looks of him. Smartly dressed, armed with a tablet and stylus. Genus mustilidae, most likely otter.

Wolf was deep in conversation and only spared them a glance.

"You're kinda ruining a special moment here, Commander."

His voice surprised her. It was similar to what they'd heard so often over ships' comm, when confronting Star Wolf in space. But in person its timbre was deeper, richer, more... real.

And more intimidating.

"..."

They couldn't hear what was being said on the other side of the connection but it was clear to her that Wolf was not very happy.

"Yes."

"..."

"Damn fucking poor timing to make a powerplay."

"..."

"Hah, funny. No, absolutely not."

"...!"

Wolf grimaced and held the comm away from his ear, making bla-bla-bla motions with his free hand. And shot them a frustrated look.

After a few seconds of this he'd apparently had enough and growled into the comm. "Yes, you've made that point twice already. I've heard enough, so let me spell it out for you Kraille. This is how it'll play out. You order your guards to take the prisoners to your ship. Fine. I order MY guards to kill YOUR guards. Also fine. End result, you're down two men and the prisoners are still mine."

The guards behind them stiffened. Wolf didn't seem to notice. Or care.

"...!"

"Oh haw, Andross, you seriously playing that card?" Wolf was angry now and the growl had turned into snarl. "Listen up. Your uncle knows damn well who to leave in charge of important matters! Why the hell do you think you're only a two-bit commander of a two-bit cruiser huh? So kindly FUCK THE HELL OFF and leave this to the grown-ups!"

He cut the connection and angrily tossed the comm behind him onto his desk, where it slid across the polished surface and teetered off the far edge, landing with a soft 'thump' on the carpet below.

The otter next to him seemed shocked, eyes wide.

Wolf didn't take notice and instead stared over his and Krystal's heads at the guards behind them. Commander Kraille's guards apparently, whoever that was. One of them spoke up, trying to sound confident but Krystal could feel the tenseness in his body, telegraphed by the grip the ape had on her arms. "Cheap bluff, Wolf. Your men aren't here."

"Ah, that." Wolf leaned back against his desk, seemingly unconcerned. "If I want someone shot I'll bloody well do it myself." The wolf's violet gaze was unwavering, his hand just inches from the grip of his blaster. Krystal didn't doubt who would win if the guards decided to draw down on him.

"Did you just raise your carbine there, soldier?"

The guard froze and cut a quick glance towards his companion, then, after a second's hesitation "Eh, n-no sir. Not at all."

Wolf smiled. Which, under the circumstances, was scarier than anything else he could have done.

"Excellent. Wouldn't want you to find yourselves caught in a dilemma where you have to choose between conflicting orders, right?"

And to the nervous nods of the guards "It's probably best if you two return to your duties. Arnis, see to it that these fine gentlemen are rewarded for their outstanding performance under extreme pressure. And send our own guards in."

The otter seemed to snap out of his fugue. "Eh, yes sir, right away."

Satisfied that the situation was under control Star Wolf's infamous leader finally deigned to acknowledge their presence.

"Oh hello."

################

The new guards meanwhile had come in and had traded places with the two apes, who seemed relieved to leave. The canine guards' hands were hardly gentler when they took a firm grip on their arms, claws digging in. Fox squared his shoulders and held Wolf's stare, bright green eyes squaring off against Wolf's single black-lined purple iris.

Wolf pushed off from his desk, huffed a sigh and stood at something like parade rest with thumbs hooked into his belt.

"Fuckin' troublemaker."

"Hello to you too Wolf."

Krystal meanwhile held her tongue, just aiming a short nod of recognition at Wolf. She understood that for now it was smarter to stay out of the confrontation and that is was better to let the two rivals sort things out by themselves. They weren't paying her any attention, good. That gave her the opportunity to concentrate and use her telepathic abilities to scan for any strong emotions of maybe even snippets of thoughts, anything to give them an edge, anything that might help them escape.

Fox continued "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Damn right I am."

The guards were just two dull patches in her awareness, attentive, slightly excited, clearly anticipating violence. The short assistant was tense and strangely enough, confused. She pushed harder and caught a vague sense of unease and a feeling of not knowing what was going to happen next, as if he wasn't privy to Wolf's plans for them. He held onto his tablet and stylus as if they were his anchor, as if they were the only stable thing in his world at the moment.

As for Wolf..

Krystal shifted her focus... and blinked. Where she expected a mental image reflecting the lupine's assertive posture and arrogant demeanor, there was simply -nothing-. Oh he was there all right, she could see him right in front of her, but he wasn't registering on her mental map. As with the assistant she pushed harder. And after a few moments finally felt something but again it wasn't what she expected.

She picked Wolf up as a dark, seamless shadow, slick and featureless like a pebble from a riverbed, smoothed by years of abrasion. Push as hard as she like but she couldn't get past that glass-like surface, her probing just couldn't find any purchase or breach. She'd never felt anything like it.

"You traitor!"

Krystal suddenly snapped back to reality. In the few instants it had taken her to do her mental scan, the conversation had apparently taken a turn for the worse. Voices were raised in anger.

"Traitor?" Wolf laughed. "To what, to Corneria, to the CDF, to the fucking Lylat system? You expect me to show loyalty to a people who've never done anything but look down on me, never done anything to earn my respect?"

Wolf reached out and grabbed Fox by his collar, pulling the vulpine close while giving him a good shake.

"Wake up Fox! Wake up and see what's right in front of you. Corneria has degenerated into a divided society where the good have it good and the less well-off have to scrape the bottom of the barrel to merely survive! Pepper and his rich poodle friends live a cushy life and everyone else is considered a second-rate citizen!"

Wolf pressed his snarling muzzle right up against Fox's nose, fangs bared.

"Including the people of Sargasso, including mercenaries like US! Can't you see you're being used, just like your father was?"

"Don't you fucking DARE mention my father!" Fox strained against his guard's hold, trying to get at Wolf.

Wolf snarled and lashed out with a lightning-fast cross hook, snapping the fox's muzzle to the side and sending him staggering back. The vulpine stumbled and sat down on his tail, hard.

Krystal cried out "Wolf!" but the rest of her words were cut off by her guard who had grabbed her in a choke-hold, forearm slipped under her chin and remorselessly crushing her throat. She struggled but it was no use, the guard was stronger, taller and had the better angle.

Wolf, meanwhile, stood over the downed Fox. "What would your dear father say if he saw you like this huh, powerless and at my mercy?"

Fox wiped blood off his muzzle and snarled a reply, shooting the lupine a venomous stare "My father would say you're a fucking lowlife that I should have put down a long time ago!"

Wolf narrowed his eye.

"Shows how much you know about James and me..."

Strangely enough Fox's comment had snapped Wolf out of his rage. He huffed a breath and, quickly masking a troubled look, took a step back. His next words were more quiet but not less harsh.

"Damn but you look pathetic pup, all chained up and on your ass like that. Stand the fuck up."

Fox was furious and beyond reason, she could see it in his eyes as he staggered to his feet. He wasn't going to back off. She struggled hard against her guard, she needed to say something or they'd be at eachothers' throats!

"Wolf dammit! Get these cuffs off me and we'll settle this once and for all! Just you and me!"

Wolf sneered. "You don't deserve the honour. Up in space maybe, just you and me sounds damn good. But you had to ruin that by getting captured." Wolf's expression turned sour. "This isn't the way things were supposed to be, pup. You and me, could've been the fight of the century. But now..."

Wolf slowly shook his head, clearly disappointed.

"This just sucks. I'm going to let you cool off for a few hours. Then we're going to have a talk. And you're going to tell me everything. About Pepper's plans, the CDF's posture on dealing with Andross, hell, even the colour of your fucking underwear."

Fox just smirked. "Yeah, dream on Wolf. You're not getting anything from me."

Wolf was done for now though and didn't take the bait. Instead he addressed the guard who was standing behind Fox.

"Jeremy, throw him in the cooler and watch him, don't let your guard down. I want him back here in three hours."

"Sure thing boss."

Fox was frowning, wait, what?

Wolf turned to the other guard. "Looks like y're really enjoying holding that girl close and tight, Ben. Can't say I blame you, with a bod like that. But ease up a bit, let her breathe." Which he did and Krystal gasped, filling her lungs with gulps of fresh air. What the heck was Wolf up to?

Wolf turned back to the first guard. "Take him away."

Fox balked, of course. "Wolf, what the hell? I'm not leaving Krystal alone with you, no way!"

That only earned Fox a lazy evil smile, as Wolf drawled "Oh really..? Looks to me as if you don't have much say in the matter, Fox." and added, his expression turning hard. "To the victor go the spoils an' all that. Should've thought of that before you went and got yourself captured and screwed everything up. You're on my turf now Fox, and SHE's going to pay for YOUR mistakes!"

And to the other guard, a curt order. "Chain her to my bed."

She managed a strangled "Fox!" before being dragged towards the door she'd spotted earlier, the one on their left. Fox meanwhile fought for all he was worth to break free of his guard, all the while shouting obscenities and curses at Wolf, kicking and screaming, but he was dragged away towards the exit nonetheless.

"WOLF! You're a dead man walking, you hear me? DEAD! Don't you DARE touch her!"

A few more paces and she couldn't see him anymore and, as soon as they'd passed the threshold into the next room, the door slid shut and cut off all sounds.

The last thing she heard was Wolf's mocking laugh.

################

"Let me GO, you bastard!"

They'd taken the elevator down two levels and were now in a long, dark corridor. The place was deserted and the only sound was the ever-present low hum of the station's ventilation system.

In response the guard just gave him a hard shove and a growled "Shut up and walk."

Fox ignored the order, pushing back. "Seriously? You're okay with this, that your boss, as we fucking SPEAK... " and here his voice broke, but he choked on "... is forcing himself on a defenseless girl?" Fox's mind shied away from the images his words were creating but he had to push on, he had to try this, there was a small chance that he could convince the guard to.. what, let him go? Surely not, but... He was clutching at straws but refused to give in to hopelessness. He had to do SOMEthing!

The guard hesitated, an expression of distaste crossing his canine muzzle.

"Look buddy, I don't know what's gotten into the boss, okay? Now walk."

Fox stood his ground, sensing a chink in the guard's mental armour.

"Listen, activate an alarm or something, okay, a distraction? Nobody'll be hurt, I won't escape, and it just might snap Wolf out of his rage, right? That could SAVE her man, Wolf might calm down enough to not.. not.. you know?"

The canine stared at him for a moment, the black tactical goggles not giving much away. After a heartbeat he shrugged. "No can do. I feel for you, I really do. This sucks, for sure. But I'm not gonna disobey the boss and risk finding myself locked in a small dark room with Leon fucking Powalski. So... you walk or I'll be forced to shoot you."

Fox was breathing hard, his options were quickly evaporating, he was desperate. His wrists were cuffed together and his ankles were shackled as well, all he could manage was a slow shuffle. He looked right and left, expression wild, THERE, he saw a fire alarm twenty feet further down the corridor. Turning back to the guard he let his shoulders slump, pretending defeat.

"Please." He remembered the guard's name. "Jeremy. You've got to help her."

The guard looked away and cursed under his breath. "When this shift ends I'm gonna head for the nearest bar and get shit-faced drunk. With any luck I won't remember a thing of this tomorrow. Now fucking WALK!"

Fox let his ears flag, turned, and started to shuffle down the corridor. As he trudged on he subtly edged towards the side where the fire alarm was. Fifteen feet... ten...

But Wolf didn't surround himself with stupid people. The guard had spotted the fire alarm too. And while Fox mentally prepped himself for his final lunge, Jeremy mentally sighed and simply lifted his carbine, aiming at the captive's back.

Three more paces to go.

One...

Two...

Fox had meanwhile done the math too and stopped, slowly turning around. He eyed the guard. It was just one of those no-win situations. They both knew exactly what he was up to. What was inevitably going to happen. Neither of them was happy about it but they were trapped in their roles and had to play this out the only way possible.

"Don't be stupid."

"You know I have to do this."

"Live to fight another day man. There's nothing you can do."

Fox sighed and shook his head. "I couldn't live with myself if I didn't at least try. You understand that, right?"

The guard just set his jaw and waited.

A moment passed. One heartbeat. Two.

Fox lunged.

Jeremy fired.

################

Fox's shouts still rang in her ears as the guard finished attaching her cuffs to two heavy steel rings at the top of the bed's headboard. Things were moving too fast again. Just seconds before Krystal had been led through a doorway into a lounge area that she'd only gotten a brief glimpse of before being roughly ushered to her right and through another door, into what could only be Wolf's bedroom.

The assistant followed them in, he had come along to code them through the doors. And now he just watched as the guard carried out his orders, fidgeting, looking extremely unhappy at the turn of events.

Both her wrists were fastened to the headboard of the queen-sized bed, arms spread wide, leaving her feeling extremely vulnerable. She lay on her back on black silk sheets, shoulders propped up on a few equally ebon pillows. The guard left, but not before giving her a pat on the head and a word of advice "Don't fight him, you don't want him angry."

The assistant was hovering at the foot of the bed, his expression apologetic.

"Ah, miss Krystal... I'm terribly sorry about this, I'm sure Lord O'Donnell has a perfectly logical reason for -"

Just then Wolf came in, expression dark.

"Arnis, shut up and leave."

"But sir, I-"

"We're not to be disturbed. Lock the door on your way out."

The otter shot her a look and let his head hang in defeat. "Yes sir."

And then he left.

Wolf, meanwhile, leaned back against the wall, arms crossed, watching her. She matched his stare, trying to silently convey her loathing and disgust. And regretted having chosen her skintight body-hugging effing flightsuit for this mission. Oh hell what had she been thinking? She could feel his gaze rove across her body and hated every moment of it, hated being so exposed, so helpless.

Her jaws were parted, she was having trouble breathing, it was as if she couldn't pull enough air into her lungs. Anxiety had its talons at her throat and it was slowly choking her.

Finally Wolf spoke up. "Don't look at me like that."

Oh really?

"I'm chained to your bed, Wolf!" She yanked on her shackles for emphasis. "How the hell SHOULD I be looking at you? It's not hard to guess where this is going!"

In response he only silently gazed at her. This went on for what seemed like a long time. Wolf's expression didn't betray any emotion. If anything, he seemed contemplative. But silence, when used correctly, can be a terribly intimidating weapon.

Finally she couldn't take it any more.

"Wolf, let me go!"

"Why?"

"You.. you don't want to do this!"

At that, he just arched a bushy eyebrow.

"I don't?"

Krystal was panting harder now, partly from the exertion of straining against her bonds but mostly out of pure fear. He was going to.. to.. She had to reason with him, make him change his mind!

"You.. this.. this isn't you, you have too much self-respect to stoop to.. to.. rape."

There. She'd said the word. And it only deepened her fear because saying it out loud somehow gave it substance, made it more real.

Wolf was silent for a moment, watching her. Then he just barked a low breathy laugh, sounding bitter and disappointed at once.

"Oh haw, that's cute, you really think so? Well. The rest of Corneria doesn't share your faith in me, they're convinced I'm perfectly capable of such heinous crimes!" And here his voice lowered further, turning into a menacing growl "Why should I disappoint them?"

He pushed off the wall and took a step closer, bringing him to the edge of the bed.

"To them I'm just a thug, a cut-throat mercenary, a traitor! You heard your precious Fox. So much easier for me to just live up to their expectations and give them exactly what they want. Don't you agree?"

As he moved forward she scooted back in fear, pushing herself up against the headbord to keep as much distance as she could between herself and this hulking gray menace. Her eyes were wide, her heart hammered in her throat, all she could do was gasp a desperate appeal.

"Wolf.. please.. "

She saw him narrow his eye.

And then without warning he crawled onto the bed.

She let out a cry and kicked out wildly, trying to keep him off her! He took a hit to the muzzle but ignored it and moved in. The stronger wolf effortlessly batted her boots aside and captured her legs under him, shifting his hips to straddle her thighs, effectively pinning her down. He rested a hand against the headbord and loomed over her, his muzzle up close and personal, a wicked grin twisting his lips. Sharp teeth were only inches from her face.

"Why don't you take a look and see how it's gonna be?"

Krystal blinked, she wasn't thinking very straight with all the adrenalin coursing through her body. Take a look? What did he mean?

"Yeah..." He leaned in closer. She couldn't tear her gaze away from his intense stare, his single violet iris seemingly filling her whole world.

"Why don't you just read my mind? Get a taste of my intentions."

She gulped and worked her jaw, tried to force a reply past her paralysed lips. But she couldn't think straight and she'd already tried reading him and it didn't work, it was useless, he was going to...

"WELL?!"

His sudden snarl snapped her out of her panic.

"I- " She bit down on her lower lip, frustrated that her throat was constricted in fear, that all she could produce was a timid stutter. No, she was stronger than this! Taking a deep breath, she matched his snarl with one of her own. "Dammit Wolf, I can't!"

Wolf didn't move, just stared.

"I tried earlier, in the office!"

That gave him pause. He frowned.

"What do you mean?"

She caught her breath. Her fear was slowly being replaced by a growing anger. Who the hell did he think he was, bullying her like this?

"Get off me." She bucked her hips, trying to push him off. He hardly moved.

"No. Answer my question."

"Get the HELL off me, Wolf!"

"Answer me!" A large gray-furred paw closed around her throat.

Wolf's touch sent a new spike of fear and anger through her body. The cuffs were biting into her wrists and her arms were trembling from exhaustion. Her anger was starting to clear some of the fog of fear from her mind but her body was still suffused with adrenalin, leaving her feeling short of breath and shivery. She held onto that anger though, grasped at it as a lifeline, tried to fuel its embers into hot fiery flames of rage. But Wolf's grip was tightening, the edges of her vision were starting to narrow as darkness closed in.

Anger could only take her so far. Wolf wasn't easing up on her and she bit down on a whimper, teeth clamping down harder on her lip and drawing blood. The sharp coppery taste helped focus her mind. No, no way was she going to show him weakness, he'd just see her as prey, if she was going to survive this she had to be STRONG, show him she wasn't intimidated by his scare tactics!

She summoned everything she had and snarled right up against his muzzle.

"GrrDAMMIT Wolf, my telepathy doesn't work that way!"

He tilted his head to the side... and eased his grip on her throat.

"Explain."

She was panting and took a deep breath. Her vision was returning. "I'm... I'm more like an empath, I can pick up surface emotions if they're strong enough!"

She wasn't telling him the whole truth, of course. With the help of her Cerinian focusing gems she could pick up a lot more than just surface thoughts. But she didn't have her jewelry with her, it was locked away in a box back in her room on the Great Fox. Her staff had been in her Arwing though and it held a large gem, goddess she wished she had it with her here now. She'd break through his mental barrier and find out exactly what his plans were! And then blast a hole through his chest!

He must have seen something in her expression. The lupine narrowed his eye, suspicious.

"Well isn't that just bloody convenient. My intel says differently. Stop fucking lying to me!"

Oh goddess, he wasn't buying it. She needed to give him something more.

"I'm not lying! I- I can pick up thoughts if they're strong enough, if a person is broadcasting hard I can hear them, but only if they're close enough to pick up!"

Wolf's muzzle twisted in a silent snarl "Well? I'm thinking REALLY HARD right now, tell me what you're picking up! And I'll know if you're lying so if you know what's good for you, you'll be smart about this!"

His weight was pressing down on her and she felt so very trapped.

"I told you! I tried earlier, in the office, while you were arguing with Fox. The guards were excited, the otter was confused, but.. but you... I don't know why but I couldn't pick up anything from you!"

She thought it through and added. "But of course you know that already, that's why you're asking, right? You have some kind of shielding device, is it something Andross made for you? Is this some kind of twisted test?"

To her surprise Wolf just looked confused and slowly sat back on his haunches, back straight, hands resting flat on his thighs. He seemed lost in thought for a minute, then looked back down at her. His voice, when he spoke, was calm, with none of the violence it held before.

"Well. Fuck me."

Krystal hoped that was just a figure of speech.

Wolf continued, studying her. "I was thinking the most horrible things I could come up with. Things that should have shocked you, should have horrified you, should have had you begging for mercy. But it didn't have any effect. Nothing, not one twitch."

He looked genuinely puzzled. "Sounds like you're telling the truth."

She watched him, warily, as he continued.

"I'm not wearing a dampener or any shielding. That I know of anyways."

Another moment of thought. Followed by a huff, he'd come to a decision.

Krystal held her breath.

She watched as Wolf dug into his pocket and... produced a key.

"Hold still. You kick me again and I'll hurt you."

He raised himself up on his knees and leaned forward... and to her shock he unlocked the cuff around her right wrist. Then sat back and dropped the key onto her belly, all the while watching her. What the hell? Her mind was reeling at this sudden turn of events, what game was he playing? Was he releasing her, why, what was he planning? Her heart hammered in her chest. Was this it, was he releasing her arms so he could more easily strip her out of her flightsuit?

What Wolf did next confused her even more.

He got off of her legs and moved back to stand next to the bed. What..?

"I'm going to get you a drink. And then we're going to have a talk."

And with that, he turned and tapped the keypad next to the door, disappearing into the lounge, leaving her dumbstruck and full of questions.

* * *

 _Okay, I'll admit I couldn't resist slipping a gag in. Lame, I know._

 _Still makes me grin._

 _Hahah._


	4. Chapter 4

_Yeah, the guards' names. Ben and Jerry. Bwahahah._

 _Okay, back to the story. Things seem a bit rough for our heroes. And I can't offer you any comfort, it's going to get a lot worse before it gets any better._

 _What the hell is Wolf up to anyway? Nothing makes sense. Krystal only barely escaped being viciously ravaged and Fox is... well I dunno really, he might be dead. I still have to write this chapter and I'm making it up as I go along, hah. It feels like a heavy responsibilty, having all their lives in my hands. I hope I'm up to the task. The path this story takes is going to say a lot about MY morals._

 _Unh, anyway. Trust me. That's all I can say._

* * *

"Drink up."

Krystal warily eyed the heavy glass tumbler Wolf had handed her after he returned. It was half-filled with an amber liquid and by the scent of it she recognized it as hard liquor.

Seeing her hesitation he raised his own glass. "It's not spiked. Trade you if you don't trust me."

She narrowed her eyes. After Wolf had left she'd quickly freed herself from her remaining cuff and shackles, leaving the chains in a heap upon the bed. And had then retreated to the 'safe' side of the room, as far from the door and Wolf as she could. Now they were at a stand-off, on opposite sides of the bed.

She aimed a defiant stare at the lupine and raised the tumbler to her lips, taking a sip. Her azure gaze never left his, locked. The alcohol burned its way down her throat and she welcomed its heat, embracing the feeling. She rarely indulged in hard liquor but right now it was exactly what she needed. Had Wolf instinctively understood that or was it just a lucky guess? If anything, he was more of a mystery to her now than ever before.

It had been simple when he was just the stereotypical villainous cut-throat scoundrel that they'd fought in space. And had defeated, as it should be. Good and bad were clearly defined and there was no ambiguity as to what had to be done, and to whom. They knew exactly what to expect, and had gotten exactly that.

Now though? She couldn't be more confused. Wolf hadn't followed through on his implied threats, he hadn't violated her, hadn't assaulted her virtue. He didn't seem driven by spite or revenge. What had he been after then? Think, girl. It's starting to look like Wolf's actions aren't random at all. Nor are they based on lust or other misguided urges, like revenge.

Damn. He's not as simple as they thought him to be. This changed everything. They'd been underestimating him all this time. She bit down on a groan. Stupid, stupid, they'd been so stupid!

Wolf was much more dangerous than they'd ever suspected.

She kept her thoughts from here eyes. It would be bad to give anything away at this point. Instead, she went on the offensive.

"Nice. Who'd you steal this from?" She licked her lips.

Instead of answering her question, Wolf answered another unspoken question.

"Had to be done, you understand."

Wait, what? Was that an apology?

She thought hard. And quickly realized that he meant her telepathy. Why would that be so important to him, why would he so desperately need to find out if she could read his mind? Oh. Right.

"Are your secrets that dark then, Wolf?"

He actually grimaced. A hit, score. His answer though, when it came, was unnerving for all its candid simplicity.

"Yes."

She slowly breathed. And took another sip of her drink to buy some time. Behind her the room ended in a row of closets that stretched the length of the station's outer bulkhead. She leaned back against them, mirroring Wolf's pose against the opposite wall.

"Tell me, Wolf. What would have happened if you'd found out I could read your mind? That I could access all your secrets?"

He quietly eyed her, seeming to accept her attempt to take charge of the conversation.

"I would have done what had to be done."

She felt a chill run down her spine, understanding exactly what he was saying. Her grip tightened on the glass and she raised it to her lips, downing the rest of its contents in one fiery swallow. She knew he could see the fear in her eyes, the sharp spike of anxiety that his words had caused.

But she didn't see any satisfaction in his gaze. He wasn't trying to scare her, he was just stating fact. That in itself was much more chilling than any heated threats he could have made.

"Fuck, Wolf."

If he was surprised by her use of such a coarse word he didn't let it show.

"You'd really have done that?"

He answered her question with one of his own. So much for being in charge of the conversation, Krystal thought wryly.

"So. What do you think happens now?"

Shit. That was a scary question. Her heart skipped a beat. She didn't want to contemplate all the possible answers to that question. None of them were good.

"Wh- what do you mean?"

Yeah, he wasn't going to play that game. Wolf didn't reply.

He just stared... as the time ticked on.

She'd never realized how powerful silence could be. Or how terribly intimidating a level stare could be. Wolf used both, mercilessly, silently watching her as she struggled to think things through. His gaze didn't waver, his body language gave her nothing and, worst of all, she couldn't get a grip on his mind, couldn't read him at all.

She wanted to cry. The situation was hopeless, she was cornered, trapped. But her pride was strong, she refused to give Wolf the satisfaction of seeing her break. Taking a breath she squared her shoulders, mentally gave herself a good shake and gave Wolf a hard stare. And an answer to his question.

"You deliver us both to Andross. And get a nice fat reward."

Wolf watched her a moment more. Nothing registered on his features. Then he gave a small shrug and pushed off from the wall he'd been leaning against.

"I need to speak with Leon and Panther. You stay here. Don't fuck up my room."

And with that, he left, locking the door behind him.

Krystal slowly slid down to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees, tightly, the empty glass falling to the carpet. She felt deflated, uncertain, as if she'd somehow failed a test.

################

Pain.

He moaned. The pain was all-encompassing, it filled his world, it defined his being. He shuddered, eyes screwed shut, jaws open wide on a silent scream.

Hands were on him, tugging at his jacket.

"Easy, easy."

A sharper pain, more localized.

"There ya go."

A heat spread through his body, and where it touched him the pain dissipated, subsiding to a bearable throbbing ache. Oh gods, the relief was indescribable.

"Wh- who..?"

"Shh. It's me."

Fox frowned and fought to open his eyes. He was lying on the floor in some bare concrete room, cradled in the arms of... wait, the guard. What was his name... Jeremy?

The tactical goggles had been pulled down around his neck. Fox looked up into hazel eyes. Jeremy was a wolf, but with a tan and brindle colouring, unlike his boss' gun-metal gray pelt.

"Give the painkiller some time to take effect, 'kay?"

Fox could only nod. His body felt like he'd been run over by a Landmaster tank.

Words were a struggle.

"G- gotta save... Krystal..."

Jeremy heaved a sigh.

"Look man, we can't always stop bad things from happening. Life's a bitch."

"Let it go for now. Roll with the punches alright? Survive man, survive."

Jeremy grimaced. After a moment he continued.

"You've got some balls, y'know? The stories about you aren't bullshit."

"Wh- what?"

The guard chuckled, a bitterness to his voice.

"You fucking did it. You knew I was gonna shoot you. But... you went for it anyways. That's just.. .I have no words man. No words."

Fox tried to think of an intelligent comeback but could only choke out out a short reply.

"... hurts."

A snicker. "No shit. These carbines pack one hell of a punch, even on stun."

The guard gently massaged the back of his neck, digging his paw deep into the vulpine's neckruff, kneading the muscles underneath. The touch was disturbingly intimate but Fox was beyond caring, it just felt too good.

Jeremy spoke, a growl to his voice. "Don't ever do that again okay? You dick.I really don't want to tell my friends that I was the one who killed THE Fox McCloud."

Fox managed a weak smile. Dammit. Speak of friends in strange places. He rested his head against the canine's chest.

"... Andross?"

Meaning, what about Andross and his plans for total domination over the Lylat system and all its inhabitants. What about that huh? Whose side are you even on, Jeremy?

Even in his weakened state Fox tried his best to turn the situation to his advantage. The guard had showed hesitation before. What was that about? Were his loyalties divided? Did he feel sympathy for his captives? It sure felt like it. Could Fox use that to his advantage, could that help him and Krystal escape?

Jeremy huffed a sigh, puffing out his muzzle.

"Shit man. All we want is a chance to live, y'know? Something to live FOR. A future for our kids, a good one."

It wasn't what Fox had expected. What Jeremy said next surprised Fox even more. No, not just surprised, it shook him to his core.

"Y're in a rough spot Fox, I understand that."

"I honestly don't know what's gotten into the boss but... y've gotta have faith in him. He's come through for us so far, in so many ways. It might look bad right now but... ah man."

Jeremy ran a paw down his muzzle, clearly torn.

"Gotta have faith in someone, y'know?"

The hell? Fox had expected a different reply, anything, but certainly not this. It made him question everything he knew about Wolf. Or thought he knew. What was it about the canine that he inspired this level of loyalty in his troops? What had he done, what was he doing, what did they not know about him? Were their intel profiles incomplete? Hell, were they WRONG?

Fox had been fighting to maintain consciousness throughout the mostly one-sided conversation and just couldn't hold on any more. He had a lot to think about. What the guard, Jeremy, had said was... disturbing. On more than one level.

It was all just too much. With a soft sigh Fox nestled into Jeremy's arms and gave himself up to the encroaching darkness, letting himself slip back into unconsciousness.

Strangely enough, he felt absolutely safe in his enemy's arms.

################

"Wolf, Panther doesn't mean to offend, but you are crazy. This will never work."

They were all sat in Wolf's private lounge, Leon, Panther and himself.

The lounge was comfortably large, it basically paralleled the office next to it and was only shorter due to the space the bedroom took up. The room held a spacious rectangle of black leather couches and matching heavy seats surrounding a low table. Deep dark carpeting and subdued lighting made for a restful, intimate atmosphere. There was a small but well-stocked bar and one wall held a wide bookcase filled with a curious mix of ship tech manuals, weapons' catalogs, star charts, fiction novels and a smattering of mementos from past missions. Shell casings. Shards of shattered armour. A wicked dagger, its blade dark with dried blood. The books were an anachronism, being printed on real paper. Some were even bound in leather.

Entrance to the lounge was through the office or coming out of the bedroom. Those were the visible doors. Unknown to most the room held a few surprises. To either side of the door leading into the bedroom were recessed panels, made to look like the station's familiar plassteel bulkheads. One panel gave access to a small armoury. The other opened upon a secret passageway that led deep into a series of disused maintenance tunnels. These could be used as escape route or as a means of entering and leaving unseen by prying eyes. The tunnels were monitored by sensors and were booby-trapped.

Wolf took his security seriously.

The lounge was home. This was where the Star Wolf team came to decompress, to lick their wounds, to take some time away from the stressful mercenary life. This was also the place to discuss plans when they were between missions, especially ones that weren't meant to be known to Andross, whose cameras and spies were spread throughout Sargasso. Leon regularly scanned Wolf's quarters for surveillance devices and, as far as they could tell, the place was clean.

Wolf's office was another matter though. While Wolf might get away with explaining to Andross that he valued his privacy and therefor didn't appreciate cameras in his bedroom and lounge, there were limits to how far the Emperor was willing to let him get away with that. Beyond their small safe haven all bets were off.

"We've been over this. If you have a better idea I'm open to suggestions."

Wolf didn't seem to take offense at Panther's words. This was just the usual way they did things, each member of Star Wolf was free to speak his mind. Wolf made the final decisions, of course, but he valued the process of examining all aspects of a mission with his team, weighing the risks, evaluating threats and planning for contingencies. But for that to work everyone had to be able to speak freely.

"I think what our kitty is trying to say is that there's no room for error, Wolf. The margin is too thin, any of us slip up even once and we are done for."

If Panther took offense at being called 'kitty' he didn't let it show. Probably best to interpret Leon's jab as a term of endearment and not as a slight to his manlihood. Not a bad thing when viewed like that. If anything it was a sign that he'd been fully accepted into the tight-knit team that was Wolf and Leon. Andrew wasn't a factor, it was always these two.

Panther's tail flicked lazily. In some ways he was just as closed as his two teammates when it came to expressing his feelings. He felt a genuine connection to the team, it went farther than just doing a job and getting a paycheck. But you couldn't just come out and say that. The others understood that unspoken rule as well. But where he hid behind a facade of bravado and grand-standing and Wolf pulled up walls of hard, uncompromising armour, Leon's mask was one of stillness, broken by sharp verbal barbs applied with surgical precision. He had a sharp tongue, that one.

They were different, but same.

Panther glanced over at the chameleon. Leon's pebbled reptilian skin was a deep emerald with subtle variations in shading, and stood out against the black backdrop of the seat he was curled up in. His head, hands and tail almost seemed disembodied. The effect was reinforced by the matte black jumpsuit that covered the rest of his frame. His utter stillness was unnerving, Panther couldn't even see him breathe.

"Then don't slip up." Wolf growled.

Panther returned a low growl of his own. "That's too simple Wolf." The cat's sleek pelt was black as the darkest reaches of space, with deep blue highlights whenever he moved. A white scar ran from under his right eye down the curve of his cheek, down to his jawline. Instead of being disfiguring it gave his features a roguish charm. Not that he didn't have enough of that on his own.

"This time it is not just us, Wolf. There is the lovely Krystal to take into account, and our little hero Fox. How are you going to control them?"

Wolf huffed a breath and leaned back in the couch, crossing his arms across his chest.

"They'll play along if they know what's good for them."

Leon opened his mouth to speak but Wolf wasn't done yet.

"As long as we keep them separated they'll be more manageable. Especially if we make it clear that their survuival is dependent upon their cooperation. They won't want to put eachother at risk. You've seen what Fox is like."

Leon slowly nodded. "And this afternoon?"

"We're doing that as planned. You got that covered? I didn't give you much time."

The chameleon simply nodded. "No worries Wolf. I know the perfect candidate. You'll see."

Wolf shifted his attention to the feline member of the team. "Panther?"

"Panther will arrange for some discreet purchases. All will be ready within the timeframe you specified. It will be tight but no challenge is too much for the great Panther Caroso."

He continued. "But I do wish you would reconsider. Fox's blue vixen would be much better off in Panther's care. Putting lady Krystal under my supervision would leave your hands free for more important matters."

Leon snickered and quoted from Panther's appeal.

"' _under_ ', indeed."

Wolf stifled a groan and pinched the bridge of his muzzle, eyes scrunched shut "Oh for fuck's sake, not this again."

There were times when he almost regretted taking Panther on board. This was one of them. The cat had a one-track mind where it came to the opposite sex and was painfully pushy about it. Wolf tried to imagine what his behaviour was like in Sargasso's bars and clubs, and could only wince in sympathy for anyone who caught the feline's interest.

"Panther, I'll introduce you like I promised. But that's where I draw the line. Now drop the subject before I fucking hurt you."

Panther looked unhappy and opened his short muzzle to unwisely press his case, which would surely have resulted in physical harm.

Leon spoke up, saving him.

"Wolf, about this afternoon."

That got Wolf's attention, his muzzle turning to focus on the chameleon. Leon inwardly smiled to himself. It was on Wolf's mind too, apparently. Just as he thought.

"Are you sure you want to do this? There ARE alternatives you know."

Leon's worry wasn't for the plan but was for Wolf himself. He'd known Wolf for years and had a pretty good understanding of the lupine's inner workings. He knew that Wolf was steadfast and resolute and wouldn't hesitate to do whatever was necessary. It wasn't his commitment that Leon had misgivings about.

Wolf was all about results, sometimes dangerously so. He knew that Wolf wouldn't hesitate to do things that would cost him, things that would later come back to haunt him. He'd seen Wolf sell pieces of his soul before... and now it looked as if he'd be doing it again.

Wolf was his friend, he didn't want to see him get hurt like that. But that wasn't something he could say out loud, it implied a weakness. In both of them. Wolf wouldn't take kindly to that.

Wolf shrugged nonchalantly and offered a curt reply. "None of the alternatives are nearly as good, we've gone over that. This is Andross we're talking about Leon. Half-measures won't cut it."

Leon accepted the answer. So be it.

Changing the subject, the reptile voiced the next point on his mental list. "Andrew?"

Panther spoke up, keeping his tone carefully neutral. This was dangerous territory. It was a tribute to his courage that he took it upon himself to voice the issue, to acknowledge the elephant in the room.

"He's one of us Wolf."

Wolf answered with a silent snarl, muzzle twisting. "He's also Andross' nephew, Panther!"

To Leon, Wolf's violent reaction was simply a sign of how much this problem bothered him. It was at times like these that Wolf's care for his team shone through, even though he tried his best to cover it up. Tough mercenary, right? Leon hid a smile.

"And unlike you, I didn't choose him! He was foisted on us by Andross. Just like that fucker Pigma was!"

Slamming his drink, Wolf took a moment to calm down. He scowled, but his tone was quieter when he next spoke.

"But yeah, I hear what you're saying. And you're right. He's a good kid, it's not like he can help it that his uncle is a homocidal maniac. And he's part of our team."

Wolf grimaced.

"He's my responsibility. When the time comes I'll take care of it."

Wolf stood.

"Panther, get somebody to deliver some food and drink to the kid. He's been stuck in that stealth transport for an hour already."

"We owe him that much."

################

The door to the bedroom opened and Wolf stood in the opening. Krystal looked up from her spot on the floor. She hadn't moved since their last conversation, had just rested her head on her knees, closed her eyes and tried to calm her frayed nerves. The talk with Wolf had been rough. And had left her with so many questions.

Looking up, she wordlessly examined the mercenary. Wolf was wearing his usual hard don't-fuck-with-me expression but she noticed that he looked slightly haggard. Something was on his mind, something was bothering him. What had happened? Or was it about something that was still to come? She bit her lip. Was it about her?

Wolf's words answered her silent question.

"Fox has been shot."

Shock.

Her breath caught, her heart throbbed in her throat. All she could do was stare, eyes wide, mouth open. What? No, no, no no no! She felt lightheaded.

Her throat was constricted, she tried but couldn't speak.

He raised a hand, palm outwards, in a gesture of reassurance. "He's alive, the gun was set to stun."

Wolf watched as she processed the new information. He could see it happen, see her thoughts as clearly as if he were the one with telepathic abilities instead of the blue vixen. He saw her fight her panic, grapple with it, control it. Wolf suppressed a smile. His intel had led him to believe that she was one of the weak links in Star Fox, one of the lesser members of the team. His intel was shit, apparently. This girl was tough.

His smile actually shone through when he saw her expression turn to anger. Good, damn good. Burn the shock away girl, that's the way to do it. Channel your emotions, find your inner strength by turning your rage outward. Yeah!

Krystal saw Wolf's toothy grin and it pushed her over the edge. She mis-intepreted his admiration and thought he was mocking her. She shot up from her crouch and snarled, eyes shooting daggers.

"Wolf, you ASSHOLE!"

"You did that on purpose, you cruel godsdamned $! #$! jackass!"

He just raised a brow. Creative, he hadn't heard that one before. And he'd been around, there weren't many names he hadn't been called before.

She opened her muzzle to continue but he interrupted her tirade.

"I don't think that's physically possible."

Krystal paused, confused, eyes wild, breathing heavily. "Wh -what?"

His grin turned wicked "That ahh, jackass thing" and to illustrate, he gestured with both hands, mimicking some vaguely lewd action.

This didn't do much to appease the vixen. On the contrary.

"Ahhh FUCK YOU!" She grabbed the nearest pillow and flung it at him as hard as she could! It struck him in the face but Wolf wasn't fazed. Hell, it was just a pillow. Krystal wasn't done though and jumped onto the bed to grab the next one, threw it, and then surprisingly threw herself after it, leaping straight at him!

"...!"

Wolf took a left hook across his jaw and stepped back, grinning as she pummeled him with fists, elbows, feet, anything she could hit him with. She was good too, even in her rage she didn't stop thinking, her attacks weren't blind, oh no. He deflected some, let some get through, avoided others, all the while taking slow steps backwards into the lounge.

She was stronger than he'd expected too, some of her strikes actually hurt. And fast, cripes, she was giving him a run for his money.

At one point he stopped and shoved her back, big paw on her chest. And got bitten for his effort.

"Ow, fuck! No biting!"

The pain sparked his own anger and on her next swing he leaned past an incoming fist, jabbed an uppercut into the vixen's exposed ribs, used his other hand under her chin to push up and back while pivoting around his axis, shifting the wild vixen's momentum to take her to the floor with him. As the pain hit and her body reflexively flinched, he slammed her down to the carpet and pinned her there, one knee on her chest.

Even through the pain she kept trying to hit him, clawed at his leg, tried to land a vicious punch to his groin.

"ENOUGH!"

Wolf's harsh command voice cut through her anger. She froze, staring. Knew it was over and let her fists drop to the carpet, arms stretched above her head. Breathing hard she just watched him, chest heaving, waiting for his next move.

Wolf chuckled, catching his breath too, tongue lolling out between sharp fangs. A small cut on his lip glistened bright red.

"Not bad girl, not bad at all."

She held her defiant expression a moment longer but the fight was gone. She sniffed and rubbed at the side of one eye, looking away. Her expression had turned sad, hurt, confused. Fuck. She wasn't going to cry on him, was she?

"Wolf, why did you DO that? Why would you... b-be such a jerk?"

She looked like a puppy that had just been kicked. And didn't know why it was being punished. He winced but quickly pushed the feeling down.

Keeping his expression neutral he replied. "You needed it."

He didn't add that he'd needed it too. A distraction, a way to vent his stress. Cruel? Not really. A dick move? Yeah definitely. He'd used her. Stress-relief and also to get her measure as a fighter. Her anger was justified, even if she didn't know his reasons.

She muttered something.

He leaned a bit closer. "What was that?"

Azure, almost turquoise eyes blazed back at him. "Note to self. Hitting Wolf O'Donnell does wonders for my mood. Must do it more often."

He softly chuckled. Again, impressive. Even under pressure she kept her sense of humour. And didn't hesitate to mock him right back. He was starting to get a feel for this girl and it was very different from the initial impression he'd gotten when studying the intel data on her. There was potential here.

"Wolf."

He blinked, snapping back out of his thoughts.

"What?"

"Get off me."

"Oh. Right."

He looked sheepish, rose up from his crouch and offered her a hand.

She ignored it and back-crawled a short distance, keeping a wary eye on him as she got to her feet.

His gaze tracked her tactical retreat. Hm. That was good, she wasn't stupid, didn't trust easily.

Wolf deliberately turned his back on her and casually walked to the corner where he'd sat earlier with Leon and Panther, bushy gray tail lazily a-swish. He sat down at one end of the largest couch, half-turning in the seat to face her.

"Come. Sit. Catch your breath. I'll tell you what happened."

Despite her misgivings and distrust he knew it was an offer she couldn't refuse.

And he was right. After a moment's hesitation Krystal carefully approached and gingerly took a seat on the other end of the couch, sitting as far away from him as she could, leaving a bit more than a meter's space between them. She sat straight, knees pulled up with her arms wrapped around herself, probably to hide her shakes, he thought. Understandable, under the circumstances.

Wolf shrugged. "He resisted, tried to escape." He felt the weight of her azure gaze and continued. "He wanted to create a distraction, raise the alarm. To distract me."

Krystal frowned. Wolf watched her, she'd recovered enough to be using her brain again, good. Impressive even.

"Why?"

"To stop me from ravishing you."

He didn't mince his words, didn't cushion their impact. He saw uncertainty flash across her expression, the unspoken question.

He drew her back into the conversation. While keeping her off-balance.

"He almost did it y'know."

She perked her ears and straightened her lithe frame, attentive. Damn, Panther had a point, she wasn't hard on the eyes. To the point of distraction even. He gave himself a moment to enjoy the view.

"Yes, and?"

Blinking the thought away he got back to business.

"Oh, haw no, not Fox. Your precious Fox never stood a chance. All he did was get himself shot, the idiot. I meant the guard, Jeremy."

That only earned him a look of confusion so he continued. "Fox knew he'd never reach the alarm before Jeremy shot him." He softly chuckled, it had been a ballsy move, he had to admit. Not that he'd ever say that to her. Or to Fox. "He tried to convince Jeremy to activate the alarm, promised to not try and escape."

"As long as they tried something, however slim the chance, to save you from me, see?"

Krystal looked uncomfortable, was probably thinking back to the terrifying moments in the bedroom. He wasn't going to tell her that she'd never been in any danger of being assaulted that way. Hell, on some level she'd probably already figured that out on her own. But there would always be that doubt.

"Why would one of your guards even for a moment consider helping Fox?"

Ah good. They were getting closer to what he really wanted to get across to her.

He leaned forward, his already growly voice taking on a hard edge. "You've had a glimpse of Sargasso, Krystal. Its people. Maybe you've even caught some of their feelings, their emotions. What does that tell you?"

She frowned, thinking. Watched Wolf. What did he want, what was he leading up to? She thought back to the short ride she and Fox had taken through the station. The surprising difference between the bleak military section with its soldiers and stark gray walls, and the colourful, vibrant atmosphere of the civilian section, with its hodgepodge mix of people of all ages going about their daily routines. It had felt so very normal, peaceful even. Even back then the contrast had seemed strange to her, significant somehow.

Had she picked up any emotions, any thoughts? Yes. She looked back up at Wolf.

"They're trying to lead a normal life."

His heart skipped a beat. Yes. Fuck yes. He couldn't just explain these things to her. For this to work she had to understand, truly understand. And that was only possible if she reached her conclusions on her own.

"And about Andross?"

He watched her again.

"No specific thoughts, but... the soldiers' presence felt out of place. It felt.. oppressive, unwanted." She looked up again, caught his gaze. "The people resent Andross' soldiers, they don't want them here. They... " Her eyes widened. "They're not on Andross' side."

He slowly nodded. Damn but she was good.

"Now... this guard, Jeremy. He's one of mine, understand, not some Andross thug. After shooting Fox he called me. Reported it in. And then actually chewed my ear off for being a dick."

He couldn't hold back a laugh, a hint of disbelief in his voice. "Haw, that was an amazing conversation. Do you realize how much guts that takes, to go up against me?"

Krystal was confused. One of his men showed signs of insubordination and Wolf was okay with that? Not just okay, but happy?

She replied dryly. "Is this Jeremy still alive?"

He snorted. "Fuck yeah. He doesn't know it yet but he's getting a raise."

The vixen tilted her head to the side "I don't get it."

"Don't you see? He's a good man, he's like the people of Sargasso. What I had in store for you REALLY bothered him. And he had the backbone to call me out on it."

Krystal pulled a face "Are you trying to convince me that you're a good man too?"

Wolf was so surprised all he could do for a moment was stare. And then he laughed, hard, the question had taken him totally unawares!

"Bwahah! Who, ME?" and smirked. "Don't be fucking naive."

"That's NOT the point I'm trying to make here, girl."

She growled at him, visibly annoyed. "Stop calling me 'girl'!"

He leaned back, expression hardening. Stared down the length of his muzzle at this slight female who dared interrupt him. Hmph. Then again, she'd had a rough day. And had showed considerable backbone these last few hours.

Maybe he should cut her some slack.

Besides, it was a good moment to jerk her chain some more. He'd planted a seed and she'd be thinking upon their conversation, was no use trying to force his point across any further.

Fine.

"Fox will be here in an hour."

He saw her mind skid off track, scrambling to adjust to this new jink in the conversation.

"F-Fox?"

He nodded.

"I'll give you two a few minutes together."

She processed that, he could see it in her eyes. And instead of holding onto that happy thought like some weaker person would, she followed it through, explored the what-if's, played out possible scenario's in her mind. She didn't settle for the comfort he'd offered her.

"And... then?"

He waited too long to answer. She must have noticed something in his expression. Fuck. That was more than he wanted her to see. The vixen's eyes widened and she raised a hand to her muzzle, staring, suddenly fearful.

"W-wolf?"

Godsdammit. Too late to back off now.

He shrugged. He wasn't going to coddle her. Any reassurance would be a lie. So he gave her the truth.

"What happens after that, you ask?"

"Bad things happen."

* * *

 _Oofh._

 _It's late and I'm tired. But I don't care, writing this is so much fun. Thing is, at the start of a chapter I have a clear view of how the scenes are going to unfold but... once I start writing, and the characters start to interact with eachother, it goes places that I hadn't planned on. It's like Fox, Wolf and Krystal take over and the story writes itself._

 _It's freaky._

 _But hey! Hope you're enjoying the ride so far! Leave me some feedback if you can, I'd really appreciate it!_

 _To sorta-quote Krystal, what's next? Well, next chapter will be rough. Don't say I didn't warn you. Mop-and-bucket rough. But y'know what they say, after rain comes sunshine of something like that._

 _Here's something to remember though. Something that will remain true throughout this whole story, the journey our heroes will be taking. A well-known author once said :_

" _Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future"_

 _Yeah. So true._


	5. Chapter 5

**Death and Redemption - chapter 5**

 _Okay guys and gals, sorry for the long wait. RL has been yanking my chain, yadda yadda, you know how it is._

 _But the story's back! And Happy New Year!_

 _Our heroes are still in hot water. And Wolf's plans are still mostly unclear, even more so his motives. As for romantic developments, well, not much on that front yet. These things take time. Further in this installment: the plot thickens and some pieces of the puzzle start to become visible. Also Wolf makes good on his promise. Bad things. Corneria's in for a shock._

 _Enjoy!_

 _(playing: Linkin Park, Steve Aoki remix "A Light that Never Comes")_

* * *

The past hour had been tense. Wolf had returned her to his room and had told her to wait. She could have protested, could have resisted... but... after his final words she'd thought it best to play along. Bad things. What had he meant by that? She wasn't sure she wanted to find out. So she held her tongue like a good little girl and let him lock her in.

And now here she sat on the edge of the bed, elbows on her knees, staring down at the floor. Thinking. Nursing her anger, trying to stop it from clouding her mind.

If she wanted to beat Wolf, if she wanted to have ANY chance at escape, she needed a clear mind. She needed to be able think. And most of all, she had to get a handle on Wolf, she had to understand him first before trying anything. She had to get into his head.

And that's where she hit a wall.

Literally. When she tried to read his mind, there was just nothing there. It was the shielding she'd encountered before. But figuratively speaking she couldn't read him either. His behavior just didn't make sense, she couldn't figure out why Wolf was doing the things he was doing. Was he toying with her and Fox? Was this all just some elaborate cruel game? And when he tired of it, what was going to happen then, was this all going to end in a blaster to the head?

She sighed. That didn't seem to fit. Wolf didn't strike her as the kind of guy to play it like that. Oh she didn't doubt that he was capable of it. But at the same time she was pretty sure that if he had a real grudge and wanted them dead, they'd be dead already.

But what then?

Was he going to have some fun pushing them around, only to ship them off to Andross for the final chapter in this ill-fated adventure? Was that it?

It was possible.

But was it likely? Wolf had been talkative for some reason. She was intelligent enough to recognize that his actions and words weren't to be taken at face value, they held a subcurrent of something else, she sensed there was a deeper meaning. She was also intelligent enough to understand that nothing Wolf did was random, that was becoming very very obvious. They had so underestimated him. If he was acting in unexpected ways, there must be a reason for it. She groaned, wracking her brain for answers. What did it all mean, what had he been trying to tell her? Or make her understand? Was that it, was he feeding her small bits of information so she'd be able to draw conclusions on her own?

Maybe. She felt like she might be on to something. But was it real or was he just playing her? Perhaps so, but maybe she was just reading too much into this.

She wrung her hands, part frustration, part fear. But she resolutely pushed the fear down. It wasn't helping. Her anger was a much better motivator and helped keep her sharp, so she held onto it.

#########

"Arnis."

"Yes sir?"

"Make sure the Wolfen are on hot stand-by. I want them fueled, armed and ready to launch. Including the spare."

Leon and Panther had left to carry out their orders. Wolf was back in his office, scrolling through his datapad as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Arnis knew him well though and could tell that the mercenary leader was on edge, something was weighing on his mind.

"Sir? Are you expecting imminent trouble?"

Wolf shrugged. "Just in case. Don't want to be caught with our pants down."

His assistant nodded. "Of course sir, I understand." and made a note on his tablet while voicing his mental checklist "All Wolfen to be fully operational and prepped for immediate launch, including master Pigma's fighter."

A heavy silence filled the office. Arnis wasn't a warrior and his senses weren't attuned to danger, so he missed the sudden change in atmosphere.

"Arnis?"

The otter looked up, only to be met by his employer's scowl. In-his-face close. The large lupine had taken a silent step closer and was now looming over him, very much inside his personal space.

"Don't ever mention that fucker's name here again. Understood?"

"Y-yes sir!"

#########

Wolf was still in a foul mood when the doors opened to admit Fox back into the office, followed closely by the guard, Jeremy. The tall tan-furred canine loomed large behind his smaller captive. Two other figures trailed behind them, a feline with spotted tawny fur and tufted eartips, female, and a male avian with a mostly dark plumage, a coal-black coat interspersed with ocher yellow feathers. The two newcomers both carried compact video devices and were recording everything in sight.

Ah, the media team, as ordered. Good.

Fox looked a bit the worse for wear. His burnt-orange fur was disheveled, he'd obviously had a rough time. But the vulpine held himself upright, back straight and green gaze sharp. Defiant. As before they stopped just a few feet in front of Wolf, Jeremy keeping a firm grip on his captive. He wasn't going to be taken by surprise a second time.

Not waiting for Wolf to acknowledge him Fox spoke up, seizing the initiative. He kept his voice level, in an effort to sound reasonable. There must be some way to get through to Wolf, surely he could be reasoned with?

"Wolf. Enough of this, okay? We don't have to be at each others' throats, this can still be fixed, you haven't crossed any lines yet, you can still negotiate for our release with General Pepper and come out on top. You'll be able to present Andross with a victory!" He gestured to underscore his words, the shackles swinging in sync.

Wolf didn't look very impressed. He impassively eyed the vulpine for a few heartbeats, then replied.

"Haven't I?"

Wolf's answer stopped Fox in his tracks, derailing his train of thought. This wasn't what he had expected.

"Eh... haven't you what?"

"Crossed lines, Fox."

Fox frowned, not sure what the lupine was getting at.

"Seems to me I've crossed your precious lines a long time ago. There's no going back for me. Pepper wants me dead." and added, jabbing a sharp claw in Fox's direction "YOU want me dead."

"I don't- "

"Oh really? My actions against Corneria, the countless pilots I've shot down, your father's death, that's all fine with you?"

"..." Each of the dark wolf's words hit Fox like a blow to the chest. His lungs felt constricted. Godsdammit what was it about Wolf that he could so easily get under his skin? Fox felt his control slipping, anger building up again. Wolf's next words only made things worse.

"You still believe in some kind of 'peaceful deal' with the Emperor?" Wolf stepped closer, his gruff voice dripping with sarcasm as he made a quotation marks gesture with both hands to indicate what he thought about the notion of a peaceful deal.

"Y'know what? There IS no fucking deal to be made! It's submit or die, Fox!" he snarled, glaring at his captive. "So which is it going to be?"

Fox finally found his voice and grit out a reply past the pounding beat of his mounting rage.

"Corneria will never submit!"

Wolf huffed a small laugh of derision. "Yeah right." and turned away, sauntering back to his desk while casually adding over his shoulder "Fine by me. They're all a bunch of pricks anyway."

"Take him inside.", he ordered. Jeremy gave a curt "Yes sir." and started to move his captive towards the doorway leading to Wolf's lounge.

"Arnis. We're not to be disturbed, under any circumstance. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

#########

Fox was pushed to the center of the lounge. For all his earlier concern and gentle handling Jeremy was all business again. So much for small mercies, Fox thought to himself, wincing as the guard's claws bit into his shoulders. He had a brief moment to look around and examine the room they were in. Black carpet, black couches, a small bar, a door to his right. No Krystal.

The door he'd just come through closed behind Wolf, locking with an audible 'snick'. The media team had been left in the office along with the assistant, Arnis. Jeremy released his grip on him and took a step back, making room for his employer. Fox turned to face the lupine.

Whose expression didn't give him anything. His tone was surprisingly mild though, nothing like just a few seconds earlier.

"Fox, try to not be an ass. I'm not having the best of days."

Fox gaped. Was this guy serious? "What the hell Wolf? YOU're not having the best of days? What about being shot down, barely surviving a crash and burn, getting captured and dragged in shackles before your worst enemy, hell, getting SHOT!"

Wolf just gazed back at him as he ranted, gray muzzle impassive.

The guy was unbelievable. Fox snarled "Watching helplessly as a teammate is taken away to be ravished?"

"Where IS Krystal, Wolf? What have you done to her?"

He watched as the dark gray wolf took a step forwards, his piercing amethyst stare aimed right at him.

"You done? Got that outta your system, Fox?"

Oh no he wasn't going to take that kind of shit attitude, prisoner or not. His heart was pounding in his chest, the hot beat of anger was throbbing through his veins, threatening to cloud his vision. This was about Krystal and he wasn't going to be jerked around! Already he could feel a red haze closing in.

"ANSWER ME WOLF!"

That earned him a frown. And an unexpected reply. "Give it a fucking rest Fox, shut your yap for a minute."

Wolf turned to the guard "Jeremy, let the lady out of the bedroom."

Wait, what? Fox panted, catching his breath. He narrowed his eyes, suspicious, what was Wolf up to? Jeremy walked up to the door Fox had spotted earlier and knocked, adding a polite "Miss?"

And then opened the door. It hadn't been locked, apparently.

"Krystal?"

"FOX!"

She ran up to him and he barely had time to raise his cuffed wrists before she slammed into him, hugging him tight! He tried his best to hug back but the shackles were in the way. Not that he cared, she looked unharmed, in fact she looked just fine! Relief washed over him, the feeling was incredible.

"Krys, Krys, are you okay?" he spoke against the top of her head because she'd buried her muzzle under his chin, burrowing into the soft fur at his throat.

A laugh. "Am -I- okay? You're the one who got shot!"

She pulled back, a big smile on her face. Probably just as big as his own, he thought.

"How do you even know about that?"

She cut a glance past his shoulder. "Wolf told me."

That name brought back his frown. But Krystal wasn't done yet. Pulling out of his arms she turned to the guard. And to his surprise asked "Are you Jeremy?"

Jeremy blinked in confusion and looked towards his employer for orders. Wolf simply nodded.

"Eh, yes miss."

Fox watched in growing wonder as Krystal walked up to the guard and rested a hand on his arm. In a warm voice she continued "Thank you so much for what you did."

Jeremy blinked again. "For shooting Fox McCloud?"

Krystal giggled. Under the circumstances it was a wonderful sound. Strange, but still wonderful. To Fox it meant she really was okay, Wolf probably hadn't harmed her much if she was feeling good enough for this kind of behavior. At the same time it raised a lot of questions. What had happened while Wolf had held her captive? They'd been together for THREE hours. A LOT could happen in three hours. He grimaced. And what was up with Jeremy?

"No silly, thank you for what you did -after-." she smiled "You took care of Fox, helped him through the pain. I'm very grateful you were there."

Jeremy just stood stock-still, he wasn't used to this. Captives often spoke to him, sure, but it was usually curses, threats, attempts at bribery, that kind of stuff. This was... novel.

Fox's jaw dropped at what Krystal did next. She went on tiptoe and planted a chaste peck on the side of Jeremy's muzzle.

"And a special thanks for standing up to Wolf and defending my virtue."

Jeremy stood rooted to the spot, eyes wide.

Wolf had moved a few paces and stood leaning back against the small bar, elbows resting on the raised counter. His relaxed pose didn't translate into his voice though, it was still level and emotionless. Controlled.

"Yeah. I told Blue about your call. And the chat we had."

Jeremy was looking more and more worried. "S-sir?"

Krystal turned, her expression a mix of disapproval and mischief. "Wolf, stop being a bully. You told me yourself how impressed you were that Jeremy had the courage to call you out."

Fox, by now, had turned and was watching the goings-on, muzzle first turning to look at Krystal and Jeremy, then at Wolf, and back again. This was surreal. What were they talking about? And why were they acting so... almost friendly?

Wolf just smirked, a hint of a smile creeping onto his muzzle. "Yeahyeah. Stop corrupting my men, you hussy. Jeremy?"

"Sir?"

"The girl's right. We're good, no worries." He reached back behind the bar and took a moment to pour himself a drink. "And as you can see, she's not been harmed."

Jeremy nodded, his relief apparent. "Sir. Thank you sir."

"Oh and Jeremy."

"Sir?"

"Give the lady the key."

Fox blinked. What was going on here? Did Wolf mean the key to his cuffs and shackles? Really?

Jeremy did as ordered, pressing the small key into Krystal's palm, with a flash of a smile. Wolf took a sip of his drink and spoke up again. "Jeremy, a word in private. Blue, why don't you go and release your Fox from his bonds?"

If Krystal resented his new nickname for her she didn't let it show. With a nod of acknowledgement and a small smile she moved back to Fox, kneeling down to start unlocking the shackles around his ankles.

When Jeremy had joined him Wolf spoke quietly, calmly watching as Krystal freed Fox. "Jeremy, I value your loyalty. And I respect that you had the balls to speak your mind." Jeremy nodded, listening attentively. "Just don't ever do it where anyone else can hear or I'll be forced to take action. Understood?"

It was a clear warning. Wolf couldn't afford to have his men question his decisions in public, even if he valued their honest opinion in private. It could be a signal to others that his control wasn't as total as he'd like them to believe. It would undermine his leadership and that could lead to trouble. He couldn't allow that to happen.

"Understood sir. And if I may..." Jeremy looked uncomfortable, but forged on "I'm honored to serve under your command sir."

Wolf understood what he meant. But under the circumstances he could only grimace, he couldn't rightly accept the compliment knowing what he was about to do in a few hours. But he couldn't tell the guard that, now could he? Jeremy's faith in him was going to be put to the test, and harshly so. Stifling a small sigh he replied "Jeremy."

"Sir?"

"Things are gonna get rough around here. Don't believe everything you see or hear in the next few days. Understood?"

Jeremy looked confused. "Er, no I don't understand. But I'll bear that in mind sir."

Wolf nodded "Fair enough. Dismissed, go get some downtime."

Jeremy glanced aside at Fox and Krystal. If Wolf was confident he could control the two captives by himself, who was he to question that? "Yes sir."

"And not a word to anyone about what you saw here."

Jeremy nodded and left, as ordered. Wolf secured the door behind him.

#########

He turned back to the room, only to be met by two pairs of eyes, watching him intently. Fox's candid green that hovered somewhere between jade and emerald, offset by Krystal's vibrant blue that held the middle between cerulean and turquoise. He huffed a breath. Panther's pansy-speak and expensive words were rubbing off on him. Fuck. That just pissed him off. He folded his arms across his chest and shot them a glare, expression darkening.

"What are you two staring at?"

Wolf's frown deepened when they didn't immediately answer him.

"What, want some alone-time? Bedroom's right over there, be my fucking guest!" he growled, stalking back to the bar to retrieve his drink, ears pinned back in anger.

Krystal squeaked an embarassed "Wolf!" and blushed, taking a small step away from Fox. Fox on the other hand just looked suspicious, oblivious to Krystal's reaction.

"Holy shit Wolf, what's gotten up YOUR ass? You going to tell me what in the heck is going on here?"

It's true that Wolf was tense. And in a bad mood. He wasn't looking forward to the next few hours but he wasn't going confess that. Instead he just turned back and took a swig of his drink. Self-medication? Fuck yes.

"Well pup, since you mention it, I was planning on bending you over that couch over there and showing you some genuine Sargasso hospitality."

His hostile stare matched his words. It was intimidation, pure and simple. With a dash of mockery and disdain. Wolf was being a dick and knew it but didn't care. He needed an outlet for his stress and Fox had the misfortune to be the focus of his wrath. Hell, he was the perfect victim to torment.

His eyes narrowed as he noticed something. Was that a blush on Fox's muzzle? No way. No fucking way. Hahah this was precious. He couldn't resist. Blood in the water and all that.

"Oh for fuck's sake Fox, did that sound good to you, you like it when I talk dirty?" he smirked "You getting a rise off've this? Is that a flashlight in your jumpsuit or are you eager for some rough riding?"

That earned him an outright snarl and a "Dammit Wolf!". Which only made his smirk widen. Coming from McCloud that display didn't make much of an impression on him. He'd faced down much much worse predators. Real monsters. And walked off to live another day.

Fox had a point though, he thought, his smirk slowly fading. He WAS being a dick and it was getting kind of old. Krystal's reproachful gaze only served to underscore that. Taking his anger and angst out on Fox was below his dignity, he realized. Worse, it was a sign of weakness, grr. So suck it up and do what has to be done Wolf, like you always have. You've had your childish fun, now get back to business.

He nodded to himself, concluding his inner dialogue. Taking a breath he slowly huffed it out, hand raised in a placating gesture.

"Okay okay, let's rewind and start over." he started, and added "I'm not giving you to Andross, alright? THAT's what all this is about."

A nagging little voice reminded him that he wasn't telling the whole truth. Well fuck it, one step at a time. And it wasn't as if the girl could read his mind, so he could get away with it for now.

Fox couldn't let it go of course. The suspicious frown was back.

"What? I mean, great, thanks even, but why would you do that? You'd be risking... " Fox paused while he thought things through. "... lots. What do you stand to gain by going against Andross' orders? This doesn't make sense Wolf, stop lying!"

He shrugged, expression closing down. "Believe what you want. I have my reasons."

"Not good enough!"

Wolf's lip twitched in the start of a snarl. What was it with Fox that he could so easily get under his skin? So he growled back.

"Well it's all you're getting now! Be a good little soldier and I might tell you more." The way he said it didn't leave any room for negotiation. Krystal heard it too and understood that the conversation was stonewalled if nothing else happened. Ugh, men and their cursed egos.

"Wolf...?"

He turned his frown her way.

"What is it Blue?"

She started cautiously "Wolf, you have to admit that all this is a bit... surprising." She paused a moment to be sure she had his attention. His one eye was trained on her and that's about all she got. The frown was gone but... no expression, no body language. He wasn't telegraphing any emotions at all. Talk of a level stare. Damn.

"No offense, but... we both expected to be treated badly." she bit her lip, then gathered her courage and forged on "Wolf, we fully expected that this was it, that this was the end of the line. That we wouldn't survive." She saw something in his expression, and added "That we'd DIE here."

Krystal was an empath. But being an empath was only useful if you had a understanding of psychology, of how peoples' minds and emotions worked. It was like having a strong sharp blade. If you didn't know how to make proper use of it, if you didn't train and become proficient with it, it was just so much inert steel. Useless. And Krystal HAD been trained, extensively. So even if she couldn't catch Wolf's feelings through her telepathic powers, she still had enough knowledge and experience to get a handle on his thoughts through more conventional methods.

She used that knowledge and experience now. Wolf was a hardened mercenary, a tough rogue, a resourceful warrior. That much she could see and had experienced first hand. But in most peoples' eyes he was also a traitor, a remorseless thug, a cold cuttthroat killer. His paws were covered in the blood of innocents, Corneria would have them believe. Krystal had been together with him for less than a day and had already caught enough glimpses of the real Wolf O'Donnell to cast serious doubt on that image.

Behind the gruff mask there was an intelligent person. Fierce, uncompromising, willful, dominating? Driven? Sometimes infuriating? Yes to all of those. And at the same time she had reason to believe there was more to him, layers she hadn't yet uncovered. There were things he cared deeply about, values that he held dear, she just wasn't exactly sure yet what they were. She'd seen evidence of a kind of loyalty. In that sense the exchange with the guard, Jeremy, had been telling. And his behavior just now, there was something that was troubling him. She'd seen him force it back, get it under control but she wasn't fooled. It was still there.

Fox was looking from one to the other, recognizing the strange rapport between the two that he'd noticed earlier. Wolf's anger seemed to melt away when talking to Krystal. And Krystal... she seemed to know how to handle him. Was she reading his mind, or his emotions, and was that her key to success? Yeah that must be it.

Wolf took a shaky breath. He hoped neither of them noticed how deep Krystal's words had struck.

"Blue... I'm not going to hurt you. I am not going to kill either of you." his gaze shifted to Fox, with a return of the frown. "Even if you're fucking irritating." Fox silently glared back.

"I'm just... " He glanced down at his drink, frowned, then finished it off in one fiery gulp and looked back at them. "... it's something I gotta do, okay?"

It was very uncharacteristic for Wolf to behave like this. There was something so guileless in his look that it struck a chord in her. Something had happened, something that had become a milestone in Wolf's life, something so significant that he was willing to go to extremes to redress the balance. And refusing to deliver them to Andross was part of that.

On top of that she'd caught a flash of hurt, of pain. It was only brief and Fox had most likely missed it. But she was better attuned to Wolf now.

She took a small step forwards and carefully continued. "Thank you... that's more of a reassurance than you've given me all day." she added with a smile "Although, after you -"

Fox interrupted. "You expect us to believe a bullcrap explanation like that?"

She grimaced and bit back a sharp comment. Couldn't Fox be quiet for a moment? She was making progress here!

Wolf growled. "I don't expect you to believe anything, McCloud. You want to live? Right now Star Wolf is your only fucking hope."

He glanced at his comm, checking the time.

"Now take your clothes off."

#########

"You want us to WHAT?"

Wolf huffed and cut Krystal a glance before focusing on Fox again.

"No, just you."

Fox was outraged. "Are you out of your mind Wolf? If you think for a moment that I'd ..." Fox's words trailed off as he noticed that the lupine had drawn his heavy blaster and was silently adjusting its settings. "Wolf, what are you doing?"

Wolf shrugged.

"Am figuring I should just stun your ass and save myself all the fucking aggravation." His tone was businesslike, calmly matter-of-fact.

In the sudden silence Krystal stepped forward. They were at it again and she had to stop these two hotheads before someone got hurt. And she thought she had a way to do that. Something had been nagging at her, had been in the back of her mind. Now was as good a time as any to put it to the test.

"Wolf... you didn't just save us from Andross for any random reason. You have a purpose. You need us for something."

He shot her a sharp look.

"You... " she took a breath. "Look, Wolf, if you want someone's cooperation it's a lot easier to get it if they understand WHY, instead of just forcing them to do your bidding."

His expression clearly showed her what he thought of that notion. He was still listening though, he hadn't interrupted her yet. She could see he was thinking, was actually considering her argument.

"So... please... explain to Fox why you want him to ahh... that." She blushed. And sincerely hoped Wolf DID have a good reason for wanting Fox to strip and wasn't just acting out some sordid powerplay fantasy. Oh goddess. That would be bad.

Wolf sighed and pinched the bridge of his muzzle, silently counting to ten. Then, much to Krystal's relief, holstered his blaster.

"Alright, fine." He turned to Fox. "That little display out there in the office, have you understood the why of that yet?"

Getting only blank stares, he elaborated "Andross' eyes are everywhere on this station. He has cameras almost everywhere, including my office. You still with me?"

They nodded.

"I can't just outright refuse him, you understand. He can force me to hand you over, he has that power." Wolf growled, clearly unhappy at having to admit that. Not waiting for them to comment he continued "So I have to mislead him. He has to believe that I have a plan, a plan to hurt Corneria, a plan to put Pepper and his lackeys in their place."

He looked pointedly at them.

"Which I do. And you two are going to help me."

Fox bristled. Krystal opened her mouth to reply but Fox beat her to it.

"NO WAY Wolf! You think we're going to help you with something like that? You're out of your mind!"

Wolf didn't seem offended, as if he'd expected that reaction. Which he probably had.

"Even if it means your survival?" he narrowed his eye "Even if it means getting a chance at Andross?"

THAT got their attention.

#########

"You sure you transferred my moneys?"

The voice was slightly nasal and off-key, as if the owner was speaking an octave higher than their vocal chords were intended for. Nervous maybe, or naturally high-strung.

"You saw the transaction log." Leon's reply was as dry as the deserts of his home planet.

"Yeah but I'm not gettin' swindled here, no way. Remember, all I hafta do is open my yap and Wolf's game is up, dontcha forget!"

Panther was trailing their talkative companion, bringing up the rear of the small group.

"Panther advises you caution, Jared. Wolf is not as patient as Leon and I, and will most certainly not take kindly to threats. Nor will he much enjoy your incessant verbal deluge."

Jared stopped and turned, looking offended. "My what? What did you just call me?"

Panther stifled a groan. "Just keep going, we are already close to running late." and gave him a shove. Jared stumbled back and shot the feline a death-glare before turning around to resume walking.

"You better be nice to me, you need me cat!"

They continued on through a narrow passageway and onto a causeway that ran between heavy bulkheads that separated two of Sargasso's six major compartments. Lights were few and far between down here but Leon knew the way since this was part of a network of old maintenance corridors that Star Wolf used to move around the station unseen by Andross' watchful eyes. It was cramped and claustrophobic. The two Star Wolf members weren't bothered but the figure walking between them was not nearly as calm. And apparently needed the sound of his own voice to keep his angst at bay.

"What the hell's this about anywayz? Yeah I know whatchas all told me and I'll stick to the plan but what's the point? I don't get it."

"Mmm that is none of your concern for now. In time you will understand." Panther growlpurred.

"Yeah but, like, is there any chance at a repeat performance? Coz I'm liking the pay just fine! If Wolf needs me for a next round I'm game, just hit me up!"

Leon actually smiled. And behind him, in the darkness, Panther's toothy grin shone white.

"We will keep that in mind, Jared. But Panther does not think there will be a repeat performance."

#########

"Okay, this still doesn't make sense." Fox was pacing, finally rid of his restraints. "You're saying all the aggro we had to go through was just an ACT, that everything you said and did was just set up to fool Andross?"

"No."

"What?" his head snapped around, green gaze pinned on the wolf "What do you mean, "no"?"

"I mean not all of it was an act. You really DO irritate the fuck outta me." Wolf smiled evilly, a twinkle in his eye.

"Aagh!" Fox ran his fingers through his cheekfur, trying to stay calm. Wolf was so infuriating! "Look Wolf, quit playing around, I see what you're doing and it's NOT going to work! I'm not going to let you bait me anymore!"

Wolf just raised an eyebrow. He did 'sardonic' really well, Krystal thought, and bit her lip.

"So say, for argument's sake, we do this. Whatever THIS is, since you haven't told us yet!" he resumed his pacing, arms gesticulating "Why would you want to help attack Andross? He's your ticket to success, if he wins you'll be top dog in his post-apocalyptic dystopian totalitarian dictatorship!"

A frown. "Holy shit Fox you're starting to sound like Panther, cut it out. It's bad enough I have ONE wingman who farts haiku and sounds like a walking thesaurus."

He shot Fox a smug look that said 'yeah I know big words too'. Krystal stifled a giggle.

"Answer the question Wolf!"

The lupine's expression darkened. Why did he even tolerate this kind of backtalk, and on his own turf no less, was it all really worth it? He didn't shove them out of the nearest airlock when he could have done so, right? The pup should be grateful! Ah fuck. If only Fox was more like his father. He had the looks, sure, but not yet the experience to be the iconic figure who had been an example to so many. The potential was there though.. well, maybe. In time he might grow to fill James' boots. If he didn't get his sorry ass killed first. The thought of James McCloud sobered him. Yes. Yes it was worth it. And even if it wasn't, it was something he just had to do.

So he merely shrugged, looked away, and answered a half-truth. "Am protecting my business interests."

"You're lying!"

Wolf turned back and snarled, pushing off from the bar against which he had been leaning. "I am NOT!" his hackles were raised and his claws were out, a clear sign he was on the verge of violence.

Krystal stepped between them.

"Stop it you two! Enough!"

She clearly had had her fill of their bickering and was angry now, her luxurious blue tail all bushed out. Both males froze.

She turned to her teammate. "Tone it down Fox! Wolf may not be very gracious about it but he IS offering us a chance! That's more than we had when we got here! And I know what you really think of him... " she tapped her temple for emphasis "... you've always seen him as a rival and not so much an enemy. You don't hate him, you respect him! Heck Fox, every time you go against him in a dogfight I can feel your happy anticipation, he's like your favorite ice-cream!"

Wolf slow-blinked, as did Fox. They shared a wide-eyed look. Whoa, visuals.

Krystal wasn't done yet though. She turned to Wolf "And you, mister!" she poked a finger against his chest "You're not much different! You both need to control your egos, goddess, if you worked together you'd be unstoppable! But instead you're acting like two little kids!"

Wolf hmph'd and looked off to the side, folding his arms across his chest again, a stubborn expression on his muzzle. Fox ran a hand through his neckruff, looking properly scolded.

"Ehh... okay Wolf, Krys has a point, let's-"

Just then the door to the secret passageway clicked open and they all turned to look. Leon came into view, eyes unreadable, followed by Panther who was guiding a third person into the room, his big black paws gripping the figure's shoulders.

Krystal gasped.

Fox's jaw dropped.

"What the- ? But that's... that's ME!"

#########

"Nice, Leon." was Wolf's only comment.

The new vulpine's snarky voice assaulted their ears. "Hahah hey Foxy, surprised?" he said with a wide grin and stepped closer to Krystal "Imma gonna be YOU! Does this mean I get to bed the babe too?"

Fox and Krystal were still speechless. Leon was silent and shifted to stand next to Wolf. Panther... well, Panther growled low and made a move towards Jared, in full stalking mode, murder in his eyes.

Wolf cleared his throat. Panther froze. In the sudden silence Wolf's voice was calm and authoritative.

"Panther, I keep my promises, so take a moment to say hello to Krystal. Fox and..." he paused and turned to Leon "What's the guy's name?"

"Jared."

"Fox and Jared, strip and exchange clothes."

Fox shot him a look but finally seemed to understand what the plan was. And accepted it, for now. That was good, Wolf thought, and watched impassively as the vulpines started to take off their clothes. Jared was openly enthusiastic, smirking and shooting looks toward Krystal as if to say, 'like what you see?' while Fox on the other hand was less enthused. His undressing was slower and he chastely kept his back turned to his blue-furred teammate. They got down to their briefs and Fox hesitated.

Wolf raised a brow. "Everything."

Fox rolled his eyes and dropped his boxers, muttering.

Over his head Krystal and Wolf shared a glance, the latter's lip curling up in a half-smirk. In answer he got a an admonishing frown, which only added to his mirth.

As the two males finished stripping and exchanged clothes, Leon laid a hand on Wolf's arm and drew him aside out of hearing range. Leaning close he spoke quietly. "Illicit cargo, he broke your laws. I had plans for him."

"What kind of cargo?" Wolf responded, equally quiet.

"The kind you really really hate."

Wolf's expression hardened and he cast Leon a sidelong glance. "You sure about that?"

"Oh yes."

"And the cargo?"

"Safe. We're analyzing his ship's logs to determine points of origin and intended buyers. We've got about half so far. When we've got them all we'll follow procedure." and added, a after a moment's hesitation "Well, as soon as possible, under the current circumstances."

Wolf nodded, expression still grim "Well done. And Leon?"

The chameleon turned his head a fraction to angle one eye towards Wolf.

"Thank you."

Leon knew exactly what Wolf meant. They had been together for so many years now that they only needed one or two words to convey complex context or meaning. In this case it was both. That Wolf actually voiced his thanks was rather unique and was a clear indication of the depth of his gratitude.

His tone didn't change, nor did his expression, but Leon new better. He nodded curtly in reply and that in itself carried meaning. He was Wolf's lieutenant and would do everything to protect his lord, it said, he had his back covered. But in this case it wasn't that simple. They both knew he couldn't totally shield Wolf from damage but Leon could damn well make sure that his wounds would be as shallow as possible. And for that Wolf was grateful.

Panther meanwhile had his own matters to attend to. He unsubtly shouldered Jared out of his path and approached his target.

"Ah... the lovely Krystal" he purred. "Words do you no justice, my dear. I am Panther Caroso, at your service." and before she could react he had raised her hand to his lips and had planted a not-so-chaste kiss against her fur, his lemon-yellow eyes never leaving hers. Was that a touch of tongue, Krystal thought? Oh ick.

"Um. Pleased to meet you... Panther, is it?" Not for the first time she regretted wearing her skintight flightsuit. She felt decidedly uncomfortable but tried her best not to let it show.

"Indeed it is, my dear.". He didn't release her hand. Things were quickly becoming awkward.

Wolf's voice cut through the 'moment'. "Panther."

Panther flicked an ear but didn't take his eyes from Krystal, nor did he release her hand. Wolf's eyes narrowed, that was verging on disrespect. He showed his teeth and raised his voice, with a hint of a snarl "You had your two minutes now back the FUCK off!"

The feline's eyes widened and his ears folded back against his skull. Wolf's harsh command tone reached deep inside and he hastily took a step back, a look of confused hurt crossing his blunt muzzle. Why was Wolf lashing out at Panther like that? He'd seen Panther make moves on females countless times before and his only reaction then had been mild distaste or total disinterest. Now though... What made this so different? Did he want the Krystal for himself? He grimaced and backed further away, much to Krystal's relief.

In the meantime Fox and Jared had finished exchanging outfits.

"Blue." There was still a hint of a growl in his voice.

Her eyes were still on Panther, wary. "Yes Wolf?"

"Would you be so kind as to get those shackles and cuffs on... Jared, was it?" The fox in question nod-nodded and Wolf continued before he could resume his irritating jabbering. "Make sure the restraints are attached in exactly the same way as they were on Fox." and received a businesslike nod from Krystal. She was on it.

Wolf took a breath. So far so good.

"Fox."

He received a 'look'.

Wolf bit down on a sharp retort, controlling his temper. It wasn't easy, there was a cold knot in the pit of his gut and his nerves were crawling under his pelt. Time was counting down and with every second that ticked away he got that much closer to the next phase of the plan. "Go with Panther. He'll set you up with a false identity and living space, cash, you get the idea. He'll also make sure you're unrecognizable."

Forestalling the question he saw on Fox's lips he continued. "Work with him Fox. We can't afford the smallest slip. This has to be perfect. Understood?"

Maybe it was the tone of his voice, maybe it was the silent appeal in Wolf's expression, but Fox didn't protest or whine. He just asked "And then?"

"Tomorrow we'll have time to catch up." and added, uncharacteristically "I promise."

Fox stared at him for a moment... and then turned to Krystal.

"You okay with this?"

She closed the distance between them and rested a hand against his chest. "He hasn't hurt me so far, Fox. I'm full of questions too but... " she shot a glance at Wolf and breathed a small sigh "this feels like the right thing to do."

Fox knew Krystal's 'feelings' were rarely wrong. At the same time it bugged the hell out of him that he was totally powerless while Wolf effing O'Donnell was calling all the shots. That wasn't the way things were supposed to be. Star Fox always won, right? Just you wait Wolf. Your time will come.

Fox kept his thoughts to himself and silently turned to follow Panther down the secret passageway, but not before giving Krystal's hand a gentle squeeze.

#########

And then there were four.

Wolf eyed the now-cuffed and -shackled Jared.

"Good job Leon. The eye color's brown but I can work around that. And he doesn't sound anything like Fox. But apart from that he's a perfect likeness. You dye his hair?"

"Yes. And hands, feet and tailtip, also trimmed his fur here and there."

Wolf nodded. It really was a good job, and on such short notice even.

"Blue. I need you and Leon out of sight for this next bit. Jared and I are going to meet the media."

Krystal digested that information and stared. "Wolf... you can't be serious. This... person " she said it with obvious distaste "can't possibly pass for Fox!" She moved to Wolf's side, while keeping her eyes on the other vulpine. "The moment he opens his mouth the game will be up. You know that, right?"

Wolf just shrugged.

Jared chose that moment to pipe up. "It's okay babe! They's gonna computer-edit the final cut, Leon told me so, 's no big deal!"

Wolf cast her a sidelong glance "See?" but Krystal wasn't buying it. Something felt off here. Leon was impassive as usual. No clues there either. All he said was: "We need to get out of sight. Come on." and preceded her towards the bedroom. Krystal took a long look at Wolf, a pensive frown on her brow, but got nothing in return. She pursed her lips and followed Leon.

That left just Wolf and the fox, Jared.

#########

Leon locked the door behind him and finally let his long whip-like tail lash freely, a clear sign of agitation. Krystal had walked past him and had taken up position at the foot of the bed, keeping a healthy distance between herself and the chameleon. Being alone in a room with Leon Powalski was not her idea of a safe situation. She knew his reputation.

From the other side of the bed Leon eyed her. She didn't know him well enough to understand his facial expressions and body language but she got the impression that he was angry about something. So she just asked.

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? What's WRONG?!" During their encounters in space his voice had always sounded shrill to her, edgy somehow. It was worse now, like chalk on a blackboard. She grimaced and folded her ears back. Whatever was bothering him must be something major. His mind gave her nothing except cold reptile rage. A chill ran down her spine.

She was feeling less safe by the minute. But she needn't have worried, Leon was on a rant and barely took notice of her.

"Wolf should have just spaced the both of you and been done with it! Ghah but instead he's got this stupid notion that he can get away with anything! That he can fix everything! He's an idiot, a malakka-g'un-dashi!" he finished on a screech-like curse.

Krystal grimaced, okay that was just plain painful. And that last bit, was that zonessian slang?

"And YOU!"

She took a step back and wrapped her arms around herself. Uh oh. Here it comes.

"I'm not blind, I can see what's happening! You're using your feminine wiles to cloud his mind! Or your mind powers! Or BOTH!" Was his hand inching towards his blaster? She had to do something, fast.

"Leon, STOP!"

"Wolf's done nothing but intimidate me all day! He had me chained to his damn bed and got close and personal enough to breathe down my cleavage! I've never been so scared in all my life, he even HIT me, he's been a total bastard!"

That wasn't the whole truth but she figured it's what Leon needed to hear. That Wolf had also been half-way friendly and, in his own rough way, considerate, was not something that would help her here. And she wasn't going to say anything about Leon's 'femine wiles' comment either, surely he wasn't serious?

"For all I know he's still planning to dispose of us after we've served his purpose, whatever THAT is! He hasn't told us ANYthing, we're totally in the dark and honestly Leon, it's downright TERRIFYING!"

That seemed to give him pause. She couldn't detect any motion, he was unnaturally still. His obsidian eyes were staring straight at her. It was unnerving.

When he spoke though, he sounded calmer. Still very intense, but calmer nonetheless. She breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"You don't know Wolf. You know nothing about him." It sounded almost reproachful.

"He's a survivor." Leon took a breath and looked down, lowering his voice. "But he's also a dreamer." He looked back up at her. "That combination is what's kept him alive all these years." His voice rose again. "In spite of everything that has happened, everything that's been done to him!"

Krystal was silent, watching his every move. She didn't understand everything Leon was referring to but it seemed wisest to not question him at the moment. Let him get this out of his system. She might learn something useful, something that could help them escape.

Leon shook his head in wonderment "In spite of everything he's still hopeful." as if he couldn't comprehend how such a thing was possible. His tone hardened. "We had a plan. Alright, it was an insane plan but it had a chance of being succesful! And then you two just had to come along. That wasn't random, it's karma of the WORST kind! Fox will be Wolf's undoing, the bones are clear! They both know it too. And Wolf seems to be okay with it, even seems to welcome it!"

Whoa, this was getting weird. Was Leon unhinged?

"Oh I know why. I know why he's like this. But dammit I thought he'd gotten over that!" Leon was pacing now, short jerky motions, two paces to the left, turn, two to the right. Was he still talking to her or to himself? She had no idea.

"This is going to end badly. Fox will never trust him, he'll never understand, he'll never forgive! Fox will fail him. The plan will fail and no one will ever know how close we came to success! Worlds will burn, corpses will be piled high, blood will run like rivers! If Corneria manages to survive they'll pat themselves on their backs and congratulate each other on having weathered this terrible crisis. Not knowing how close they came to avoiding it altogether, how close WE came! But Star Wolf will be dead by then. Gone!"

He turned to her and pointed, one slim green finger aimed straight at her.

"Knowing your luck, you and Fox will rise from the devastation and be welcomed as heroes. And that will be the greatest injustice of all."

He said something else but she couldn't catch the words, his voice had dropped to a dark muttering. She could pass this off as the ravings of a madman, she thought. Shrug it off as delusions of an unhinged criminal. Too easy, she thought. All their intel suggested that Leon was highly intelligent.

She took a gamble. Dangerous but it was the only way to get more information.

"Is that what your bones tell you?"

A hit. His head snapped up and he narrowed eyes at her. "You want to meet my bones? Perhaps add some of your own to my collection?"

Oookay, that was too close for comfort. Time to try something else.

"I'm just trying to understand, Leon. Wolf hasn't told us anything yet. How can we even begin to trust him when we know next to nothing? You can't just expect us to put years of animosity behind us, surely you can see that?"

Maybe if she appealed to his reason she'd have more success.

Leon pursed his lips, as if giving her appeal consideration. For a moment she thought she'd get some answers but then he half-turned away, muttering "That's Wolf's call. If he hasn't told you then that's because it's not time yet."

He turned back. "But I will tell you this. You have no idea of the lengths he's already gone to. And how far he's still willing to go."

That just didn't make sense. Did Leon mean in the past? Or in the future?

Leon's next words chilled her to the bone.

"Like right now."

Had he read her mind? That wasn't possible, right? She'd notice. It must have been one of those freak coincidences. Still, her heart had almost leapt out of her throat.

Leon picked up a remote from the bedside table. On the wall across from the end of the bed was a large viewscreen and he switched it on. Krystal turned to watch, wondering what Leon was up to. No sound, just image, and something that seemed like a news report. A pale snow leopard was talking into the camera. At the bottom of the screen was a simple notice, reading "Breaking news".

She turned questioning eyes towards the chameleon but he he just pointed the remote at the screen.

"Watch."

The image shifted to a view of... she knew that room. It was Wolf's office. Wolf himself wasn't in sight, all she could see were the door to the lounge, Wolf's desk and the assistant, the well-dressed mustelid. Arnis, she remembered. He was talking to someone off-camera.

Suddenly the door to the lounge burst open and a tangle of gray and orange fur tumbled through, locked in a violent embrace. They slammed into the desk, gray on top, she saw claws and Wolf's fangs flash white and... oh, oh goddess! Krystal raised a hand to her muzzle and stared, eyes wide, watching in mounting horror as events unfolded. Blood. There was so much blood. She blindly stumbled back and the bed hit the back of her legs, causing her to sit down.

The sudden jolt snapped her out of her shocked trance and she turned to Leon, tears in the corners of her eyes. "Turn it off! For heaven's sake Leon, TURN IT OFF!" she yelled. The chameleon's expression held something between glee and rapture, whether it was for the gruesome scene on the viewscreen or for her obvious distress, she wasn't sure. But after a second or two he did as asked and the horrific scene was extinguished.

Krystal was panting, chest heaving, still staring at the now-black viewscreen, trying to rid herself of the afterimages. That... that must have happened while she was talking to Leon, right next door, only a few meters away, oh spirits, how could she not have heard or felt anything, how...

The door to the bedroom abruptly opened and she whipped her head around. Wolf. Covered in blood.

He didn't look at her. Didn't look at Leon. Just turned left and headed straight for the bathroom, stumbling into the doorjamb in his haste to get inside, leaving a smear of red against the light gray metal.

Leon cast her a look.

"NOW do you understand?"

#########

"So you're Jared."

"Yeah that's me! We ready to rock?"

"In a moment. Are you clear on what's expected of you?"

"Yeahyeah, been through that with Leon, I just look sullen an stuff and only say" and here he pitched his voice low, in a ludicrous attempt at Fox's tone "Fox McCloud, leader of mercenary team Star Fox, serial number 7635 dash 195643." It sounded nothing like Fox.

"Six four seven."

"What?"

"Fox's serial number ends on six four seven, not six four three."

"Oh. Oh, sorry, I'll remember!"

Wolf didn't seem impressed.

"You a successful businessman then, Jared?"

"Oh I get by, you know how it is, a bit of trade here, a bit of smuggling there..."

"Like kids much, Jared?"

"Kids? Haha oh hell no, no kids for me! I'm a free spirit, nobody's gonna ball an chain me down with half a dozen drooling little sprogs that do nothin' but eat and poop and whine and -"

"But they're fine for trade, hm?"

"Ah heheh yeahhh... about that, you not still mad are ya? I mean, I know you don't allow it but hell, the profit margin's incredible y'know, even if y'lose a few along the way, doesn't make sense y'd be against it, I'd be happy to cut you in for a fair share, no problem, whaddaya say? We're good, right? You still have 'em?"

Jared was slowly backing away. He must have seen something in Wolf's expression. Or his brain was finally catching up.

"To answer your question, no we're not good, Jared. We're not good at all."

"Wh-what do you mean...? Wolf, don't -" Another step back.

 _Don't hesitate. Act._

Jared didn't even see him move. One moment he was standing there, the next Wolf slammed into him and brutally bounced him off the door behind him. His head hit hard, dazing him.

 _Eyes. Wrong color._

Claws flashed. Two vicious diagonal rakes that left Jared's eyesockets empty and his muzzle in bloody shreds.

"OMG WOLF NO STOP MY EYES I'LL NEVER DO IT AGAIN I- ! "

 _Voice. They mustn't hear his voice._

He clamped a hand around the fox's muzzle, ending his appeals for mercy.

 _Media. Time to go public._

Wolf's other hand actuated the door's release and he wrested Jared through into the office, keeping him close and making it look as if they were locked in struggle. He knew exactly where his desk was and slammed them into it, hand pushing up to force the fox's head back. The angle was perfect for the media team's cameras.

 _Drama. Add emotion._

"You little bastard! You thought you could stand up to ME?" he snarled!

 _Kill. Make it bad._

His snarl had already exposed long sharp fangs and now he dove down and buried them in the fox's throat, biting down HARD. Ivory pierced skin like well-honed blades and his mouth was flooded with the hot coppery taste of Jared's lifeblood. He had to swallow in order to breathe, almost gagged. Then the taste and scent hit him like a jolt of lightning, went straight to his brain where it spiked something primal, something feral. In an instant all restraint evaporated, a red haze filled his view and he felt unleashed! Clenching his jaws Wolf viciously shook his head from side to side, growling like an enraged animal and PULLED, harshly ripping the fox's throat out, fur, flesh, viscera and cartilage in his maw, blood geysering up against chin and face.

 _Make it worse._

Wolf's fists hit the fox's body like a piledriver, again and again, the force of the punches caving its ribcage in. The meaty thuds and wet cracking of bones were horrific. A barrage of disemboweling slashes and strikes, a whirlwind of tooth and claw, Wolf had seemingly lost his mind and tore blindly into hot vital organs, surrendering himself to a red haze of bloodlust and uncontrolled rage.

Finally he stopped and straightened, letting the lifeless husk slide to the floor where it landed with a dull wet sound. He was breathing hard, panting, tongue lolling out and fought to pull himself back, fought to regain control.

 _Don't think. Don't think about what you just did. Stick to the plan. Hold it together._

Easier said than done. Wolf had never killed in cold blood. Never like this. Worse, this person had been helpless, cuffed and shackled even. Wolf wasn't a murderer. Or was he? A part of him was appalled at how easy it had been. Another part reveled in it. How GOOD it had felt, how RIGHT. It tugged at him, a whispering invitation to let go, to ignore all moral restraints and just give in, be the way you were meant to be. Be the apex predator, it's in your blood, it's your birthright!

He mentally shuddered and pushed those thoughts into a thick steel cage, locking it firmly.

 _Not now. Later. Deal with it later._

Arnis and the media team saw nothing of his internal struggle. All they saw was the leader of Star Wolf who had just rabidly killed Fox McCloud before their very eyes in the most horrific way possible, drenched in his victim's blood and gore, who turned towards them and bared pink-stained teeth in a wicked grin. He spat out a chunk of flesh, ohgods, was that a piece of Fox's HEART?

"Well."

Blood dripped down off of Wolf's muzzle like crimson drool. He rolled his shoulders. Licked his lips, long red tongue curling along his muzzle.

"So much for having a diplomatic chat."

He pointed a red-clawed finger. "Cameras. On me."

The shocked media team hurried to comply.

"General Pepper." he started, an inner fire lighting his single amethyst eye. The black eyepatch, surprisingly, hadn't even shifted during the carnage, although it too was spattered in blood.

"THIS is where resistance will get you, Pepper. It will end in pain and suffering. It will end in death."

"You've gone and made this personal. You just couldn't leave things be, had to stick your nose where it doesn't belong. And instead of using your own forces, you keep your precious CDF sheltered from harm and send others to do your dirty work. Like Fox McCloud." he bared his teeth in a silent snarl "You sent him to fight your battles while you stayed at home!"

Wolf's voice dripped contempt. He leaned down to the side and got a grip on the corpse's neckruff, lifting it up into view. The sight was horrible, the mauled and torn husk dangling like a ragdoll from the wolf's clenched fist.

"You sent him to his DEATH. Just as you did his father!"

He raised his voice, words filled with deep emotion and conviction. No one would doubt his true feelings on this.

"I DESPISE you for that, Pepper. You are a coward, you are beneath my contempt!" Wolf's voice could cut diamonds.

He glared into the cameras for a second, then raised his voice. "People of Corneria!"

"Your leaders are WEAK! They oppress you, force you to lead a life as second-class citizens! While they and their elite friends have it rich! They keep you happy and sedated with vacuous media programs and game-shows while denying you your true freedom! Wake up, I say! You are being used! Emperor Andross offers you an alternative where you can develop your full potential and become who you DESERVE to be!"

He took a step closer and turned to gaze at the corpse he still held. He huffed a sigh.

"I regret that this had to end this way." and turned to look back into the camera. "I had great respect for James McCloud. And for his son. They were brave and fought for what they believed in."

He lowered the body and let go, let it slide to pool at his feet. He let steel back into his voice.

"But they were misguided. And in the end they could not protect you. General Pepper and his CDF cannot protect you either. What's more, he would have you believe that Emperor Andross is a threat. That Andross wants to enslave you all."

"Let me be very clear on this. It's all LIES. Andross does not want war, Andross will bring you prosperity and freedom! Based on your individual strength, skill, intelligence. No class distinction, no species distinction. Equal opportunity for all, FREEDOM for all! The rewards are great for those who are willing to make an effort. Join with us and the universe will be at your feet!"

He stared straight into the camera.

"Now's the time. Choose freedom!"

It was a powerful speech and would appeal to many, Wolf knew. And most of it was even true.

"Cut."

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

 _Holy shit._

 _That was intense, am still stoked. Never know how the story will unfold exactly, what twists and turns it will take, what the characters will say and do. Writing is like that for me, it's like finding a book with all your favorite characters except instead of reading the pages you have to write them out first. It's no less exciting or surprising, on the contrary._

 _And these characters never get boring._

 _Wolf is a scary one, intense, driven, powerful. Luckily he still seems to have some sense of right and wrong, of moral values. But they're twisted and might be eroding. So much easier to let go and follow the dark path, right? Something is holding him back though, something still has a life-line to his soul. Am sure we'll find out what it is, eventually. And whether it will prevail._

 _And Krystal. Damn I pity her. For now she's just a pawn and has no idea of how important she'll be to Lylat's future. She's had a rough ride so far and as for her feelings for Wolf, well, she may understand him a bit better but that's still a long ways off from developing romantic feelings for him. At the moment, to her he's nothing more than the leader of Star Wolf and her captor. If she could escape she would do so without a second's hesitation._

 _Hard for Wolf to get closer too. He recognizes that she's attractive, duhh, that's pretty much right up in his face. He's also come to know her better and admires her spirit, her willfulness, her strength. But Wolf still thinks she's Fox's girlfriend and that's paws-off territory for him, subconsciously. Wolf is rather basic that way, he's fiercely territorial but that also means he has an innate respect for others' territories. Or females, in this case. So he's not seeing Krystal as a potential love interest, yet._

 _How will they ever break through those (mis)conceptions?_

 _And then there's Fox. He's worse off than Krystal, to be honest. At least Krystal is more in touch with things as they're happening, poor Fox has mostly been in limbo. I'll be giving him more story-time in the next chapters So where Krystal is cautiously developing a better understanding of Wolf, his plans and Sargasso, Fox can't do the same for lack of information. He's still stuck in his initial mindset of dislike and distrust._

 _Leon is right. That's going to be a problem._

 _Well._

 _A number of these issues will be resolved in the next chapter. Hope you liked this one! If so, please leave me some feedback, either as encouragement or to point out weaknesses in my writing, I appreciate it all!_

 _Take care for now,_

 _Ise_


	6. Chapter 6

**Death and Redemption - chapter 6**

 _Am liking this. The writing. The process of letting a story unfold in my mind and trying to do it justice on paper. It's still a bit of a struggle now and then, english not being my main language, so vocabulary is sometimes a thing. And I wish I had more time to devote to it. But it's all good fun._

 _Also to all the really really good writers out there, your stories are really inspiring and for that I'm grateful. Another part of me wants to bite you for raising the bar so high though, heh._

 _So what's next? I'm not telling, that would spoil the surprise. Or surprises, plural. But I can say this. Wolf gets naked. Krystal doesn't, well not until later. They share a special moment. And Krystal has a special moment of her own. And there will be bathrobes. And awkwardness._

 _Enjoy!_

 _(playing: "Party Animal" by Mark Knight [radio edit featuring Luciana from Portobella], "Wolf" by Angelspit, "Dirty Little Thing" by Adelitas Way, "Suck my Kiss" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and finally"Orgasm" by Noisuf-X)_

 _Yeah let's heat things up._

 _ **Warning sign** : sexual roadbumps up ahead, don't like, take the nearest off-ramp._

* * *

Leon cast her a look and hissed "NOW do you understand?"

Krystal had her fists pressed to the sides of her muzzle in a desperate effort to hold back a scream. She stared blindly, her brain on lockdown while all she could think of was Fox. Fox being mauled. Fox being torn to shreds. Fox bleeding out before her very eyes. The nightmare had taken full hold of her, its claws sunk deep into her psyche.

Her subconscious had been expecting something like this ever since their capture, ever since being brought before the most fearsome of Andross' henchmen, had expected them to die exactly like this, in pain, in a pool of blood. It was a deeply rooted fear, a visceral knowledge that death was only a breath away. That fear had been with her all day, off and on, while Wolf fed them bits and pieces of a story that could be true but was probably all lies.

And when it all suddenly turned real she was fully primed to believe the images. Even after meeting Jared, even after having placed those very cuffs on him herself, it was still Fox she saw. Her Fox.

Leon silently watched the vixen as she processed the shock. After a few seconds he saw that her brain was starting to make sense of reality again and the look of panic subsided, replaced by tears of relief.

Speech was beyond her. All she could do was nod. Oh yes, she understood. She understood only too well.

"Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, Wolf needs my assistance." and he disappeared into the bathroom.

#########

The cold water blasted away, Wolf standing in its numbing spray. He had ripped his blood-sodden shirt off and was clawing at his half-gloves by the time Leon caught up to him. Another shadow was close behind the chameleon but Wolf was oblivious, blindly staring down at his hands while he unsuccessfully tried to rub the gore from his fur.

He was panting and sounded distressed, muttering low, again and again "I can't get it off Leon, it's not washing off, I-... can't... it's not coming OFF!" He frantically clawed at his arms.

Leon stepped in close and ignored the freezing water, reached for Wolf's hands "Wolf, no, don't, no claws." preventing the lupine from hurting himself. He shot a glance at Krystal who had followed him in against her better judgement and stood in the bathroom just outside the shower stall, face tear-streaked and arms wrapped around her lithe frame. She'd recognized that something was wrong and, Star Wolf or not, couldn't just hang back and do nothing. That was not who she was.

Leon was doing his best to reach Wolf. "Take it easy Wolf. Warm water, remember? Warm water will wash the blood away, warm water and soap. Lots of soap."

She grimaced and wiped at her eyes, firmly pushing her emotions down under a heavy layer of pragmatism. Did this happen often? It almost sounded as if they had been in this situation before. Her grimace quickly faded though as her empathy kicked in. Wolf was a terrible sight to behold. His fur was matted and looked almost black where it was caked in blood, he was literally covered in it. Worse, he seemed unaware of his surroundings, in some kind of mental fugue, muttering over and over that the blood wouldn't wash away, wouldn't come off.

She didn't hesitate and stepped into the shower. Her breath caught in her throat as the icy jet hit her full on, goddess how could Wolf not FEEL that?

Seeing that Leon had his hands full with the unresponsive wolf she hurried to adjust the temperature settings and quickly increased the warm water flow. The effect was immediate and her chest felt less constricted, she could breathe again. Oofh. The chameleon should be feeling better too she thought, being cold-blooded. He hadn't shown any signs of discomfort though.

The shower stall was roomy but crowding three bodies in was pushing its limits, she had to squeeze past the green reptile to get closer to Wolf. Leon was still busy preventing him from clawing his arms open so she grabbed a bottle of shower gel from the ledge and moved in, it was obvious they needed an extra pair of hands.

Speaking up above the loud hiss of the cascading water she asked "Leon?"

"Face and head. And get some of that here." he said, indicating the bottle.

She nodded and squirted a generous amount of gel into the chameleon's upturned palm then did the same for herself, capping the bottle and wedging it in her belt.

She looked up into his face and kept her voice level, warm but firm. "Wolf. Close your eyes, I have soap here. I'm going to clean your face first, alright?" She waited a heartbeat but didn't get a reaction. "Wolf? It's me, Krystal. You need to close your eyes. Please?" The unfamiliar word seemed to reach him, or maybe it was her name, she couldn't be sure. But he nodded and even leaned his muzzle down towards her, closing his eye.

"Okay, here it comes, I'm starting on top." and she did exactly that, rubbing some of the gel into the lighter fur between his ears, then the ears themselves. The scent of the soap was woodsy, forest trees and something heavier, smokey, that reminded her of leather and cigars. Not at all unpleasant.

She worked slowly and made constant progress, applying soap to the heavier fur at the back of Wolf's neck, cheekfur and finally his muzzle. The gore was worst there and she made a face as she did her best to massage the mess out of the wolf's pelt. It was tough going, the blood had gone all sticky and she could already see that he was going to need a second washing. Damn. She persisted and got it done.

Okay what next? She hesitated.

There was one area that she'd been avoiding. "Wolf. I'm going to remove your eyepatch, okay?" She felt him stiffen. "Please. It has to be done, you want to get it all off right?" He didn't move for a few counts, then seemed to steel himself and nodded, silently giving her permission. That was a good sign, she thought, he was becoming more responsive. And a small part of her felt proud that he trusted her enough to allow such a thing.

She reached up and carefully worked the strap loose, then the eyepatch itself. Wolf had his eyes closed so the sight wasn't as bad as she'd feared, just a large vertical scar. His eyelids seemed mostly intact.

"Okay Wolf you're doing great. Here comes the soap, be sure to keep your eyes closed." She talked to him in soothing tones, the kind she used to use on wounded animals. In her younger years on Cerinia she and the other teen vulpines had regularly contributed their free time to community services, one of which had been helping out at the local veterinary station. Her people often brought in small woodland creatures that had been hurt and needed treatment. Wolf was just a larger beast, she thought to herself.

She cleansed his brow, taking care to not get any soap in his eyes. Temples next, then cheekbones, she moved her fingers in small circles, rubbing rhythmically. Was it her imagination or was Wolf leaning in against her touch?

She didn't get time to ponder that much, the shower was full of distractions. From the side and down, just beyond her field of view, she heard Leon say "Wolf, left foot." then a moment later "Right foot." and wondered what Leon was doing. Probably removing Wolf's combat boots. The cabin was steaming up now, hazing her view. Next an arm reached past her to the ledge for a brush, again breaking her train of thought. "Where's the soap?" Leon asked. "My belt." she answered and twisted her body so he could reach it. Which he did, with a silent nod.

Face done, she carefully rinsed Wolf off. Leon patted her shoulder, apparently done scrubbing Wolf's claws. "You do the front, I'll do his back." She absentmindedly nodded, adding a "Got it" while washing the last remnants of suds away. Held out a hand and got the bottle back. Squeeze, start on Wolf's throat. She winced, again lots of blood and... pieces. She shuddered. Keep at it, shut down your disgust, do what needs to be done. She ran fingers through Wolf's thick fur, felt him shiver under her touch. Probably a remnant of the earlier chill.

She slowly worked her way lower, it wasn't easy to get the clotted blood out of the wolf's thick pelt. But it was slowly thinning out, not as bad as the first parts, cleaning was becoming easier. It also helped that once past his chest, the fur became shorter and- . She happened to glance down and froze.

Leon hadn't just been removing Wolf's boots.

She bit her lip. Okay, calm down, think. Of course the blood had seeped into Wolf's clothes. So it was only logical that Leon had not only removed Wolf's boots but his pants too, right? And, um, briefs? She saw them lying in a sodden heap on the floor, along with Wolf's belt, holster, blaster and comm. Right. Get a grip. This isn't the first time you've been this close to a naked male body. Oh wait, it was. She stifled a groan and nervously licked her lips. How did she keep getting herself into impossible situations like these?

Forcing her brain back into gear she made a quick assessment. She could complain to Leon and bail, leaving them both in the shower to finish the job. But what would that say about her? That she was a quitter, that's what. That she wasn't man enough to do the hard jobs, wasn't mercenary enough to get her hands dirty. She would be a failure in their eyes. Just a GIRL. She grit her teeth. No way was she going to let that happen! If she wanted their respect she'd have to earn it. Wimping out wasn't an option.

She swallowed, took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. Squirted more shower gel into her hands and began working it into the fur of Wolf's lower chest and midriff. She mentally talked herself through it. This shouldn't take too long, it's not as bad here, not as much blood to clean off, no clots or grisly bits so far, just keep going, slow and easy. She ran her hands over Wolf's well-defined abs and bit her lip. No, bad, bad Krystal! Concentrate!

Wolf was quiet, eyes closed, one arm outstretched and braced against the wall, the other hanging down along his side, letting the warm water cascade over his head and muzzle. He gave no indication of discomfort. Or of anything else for that matter.

She was getting lower and had to crouch, the angle was just getting too awkward. Only after she was crouched did she realize that this brought her muzzle down into the danger zone and she quickly turned her head away, blushing furiously. Oh my goddess. Her heart was beating hard, that was more of Wolf than she'd ever counted on seeing. Keeping her head averted she cleaned his fur and.. stuff.. and after a few awkward minutes was finally able to move her hands lower and start on his legs.

She bit her lip, hard, something hefty kept swinging against her left ear. Ignore it, deep breaths, get a grip girl. No wait! Wrong phrasing she thought in a near-panic and felt her blush deepen. She glanced past Wolf's thigh and caught Leon watching her. He was working on Wolf's bushy tail and shot her a grin. Oh the bastard. She scowled and mouthed a silent "you ASSHOLE!" at him, which only made the grin widen. Damn you Leon.

Left leg, right leg, done. She slowly stood and looked up at Wolf, only to meet his amethyst stare. She blinked, acutely aware of their situation, of his nakedness, of their close proximity. And of where her hands had just been. If it bothered Wolf he didn't show it. She didn't know what to make of his gaze. It wasn't the dead level stare he had used earlier that day. If anything he seemed mildly curious, perhaps waiting to hear what she was going to say.

She cleared her throat. "Ahem. Dry yourself off. I'll ahh... go and get you a bathrobe, alright?"

He just nodded and she gratefully took that as her cue to retreat to the bedroom.

She was panting. Oh my goddess what had just happened?

#########

"It is not far, stay close to Panther."

The sleek black feline had led Fox back down the maintenance passageways, taking different turns than on the inbound journey with the other vulpine, Jared. Not that Fox was aware of that, he hadn't been down here before, everything was new and he tried to memorize the path they took, albeit with little success. The place was a veritable maze, a dark warren of narrow corridors, stairs, tunnels and catwalks. He couldn't keep track of his orientation, let alone his exact position in the station. They finally emerged into a quiet part of Sargasso and Panther handed him a long dark overcoat and a hat that had been stashed near the doorway, with a terse "Wear these." By then he had completely lost his bearings. Where the hell were they?

They went down a short alleyway. He looked up and saw only pipes and conduits. Sargasso's lighting worked intermittently here, leaving long dark patches of shadow where they had to take care to not trip over debris. Broken bottles, empty canisters and assorted garbage littered the deck, lurid graffiti adorned the walls. And it smelled. Fox wrinkled his nose in distaste, this place was a filthy rat's nest, if this was the kind of society Wolf was building he wanted no part of it. What a hellhole.

"In here."

Panther coded them through a door into a very ordinary hallway. Fox turned to look behind him, spotted an emergency exit sign above the door they'd just come through. He added the information to his mental map. Ten more paces and they reached a bank of elevators. Panther summoned one and, once inside, used an orange keycard to get access to their destination, fourth floor. Their current location read minus-two on the display, must be a basement level. Fox narrowed his eyes, taking note of every detail.

They exited into another nondescript hallway. A short walk brought them to room 416 and Panther ushered him in after using the same keycard as before.

Fox entered a small living unit, basic but pretty decent. Living area, nice furniture, open plan kitchen, a door which probably led to bed- and bathroom. The place was small of course but it was more than sufficient for a single person and was a hell of a lot roomier than a cabin aboard a CDF ship. Or the Great Fox itself for that matter.

But that's where things stopped being ordinary. Plastic sheets laid out in the middle of the floor. A coffee table had been moved aside and was laden with bottles of chemicals, surgical gloves and sharp steel implements. He recognized scissors, shears and something that might be a mechanical clipper. It all coalesced to look like a scene from a bad serial killer holoseries.

He stopped in his tracks. "Okay. I'm worried now."

Panther cut him a glance, closing and locking the door. "You should not be. You are not in danger here, Fox McCloud."

Fox turned, his anger mounting. He'd been patient so far, he'd cooperated, he'd been a good little boy. But now he wanted answers. He shrugged out of the coat and hat, tossing them onto the couch.

"Talk to me Panther. What the hell is going on here?"

The big feline eyed him impassively.

"You are alive. Wolf is working on a plan to get you and the lovely Krystal out of here, as he told you. In the meantime I am burdened with the task of rendering you unrecognizable to the citizens of Sargasso and Andross' watchful eyes. There are fresh clothes in the closet in the bedroom. Also a false identity scrip, a loaded creditcard and more. Again, exactly as Wolf has already told you."

Panther sounded testy now, an intensity entering his voice. Gone was the aloof and almost-condescending tone he had come to associate with the dark feline. He seemed annoyed by Fox's attitude. Oh yeah? Get used to it buddy, he was just getting started.

Fox narrowed his eyes. "Why the hell are YOU angry?"

Panther rounded on him, tail lashing behind him in agitation "You have NO appreciation of the risks Wolf is taking for you, NO idea of what will happen to not only you, but to ALL of us if this plan fails, if even the smallest thing goes wrong! Our hides will be flayed alive from our bodies and put on display for the whole of Lylat, do you understand that?" and continued, in a more reasonable voice "Personally Panther is VERY attached to his beautiful pelt and would not like to see it hanging from a pole in Sargasso Square. All the ladies would weep, and some of the gents as well.".

His flightsuit was half unzipped down the front, probably from earlier when he wanted to make a manly impression on Krystal. Now he ran a hand down his sleek obsidian fur, as if to emphasize his point.

"Come. Feel. It is extremely soft."

Fox made a face and backed off, what was WRONG with these people? Were they all mental?

"Err, I'll pass." And then remembered what he had been asking before he got distracted.

"Look, Panther, I know Wolf is taking risks here. I understand that means danger to you too, to everyone here." He raised his voice "What I DON'T understand is WHY he would do such a thing!"

Panther shrugged.

"He is Wolf, he has his reasons. It is not for Panther nor you to question his motives."

"But I can tell you this" he added "the lady Krystal is perfectly safe." It was meant to sound reassuring. But there was something in Panther's tone that gave Fox pause, he couldn't put his finger on it but it didn't do anything to ease his concerns, on the contrary.

"Panther, what are you not telling me?"

He only got another shrug as answer.

"I will get us food. After that we will get to work on you." And with that Panther was out the door again, locking it from the outside.

Fox fumed. That cat was just as infuriating as the rest of Star Wolf!

#########

With Panther gone Fox seized the moment to search the apartment. It didn't take long, the place being so small. He found the items Panther had told him about. Also a blaster and a comm device, neatly laid atop the pile of clothes in the bedroom. What the hell, they were giving him a weapon and a phone? That didn't make sense. He quickly checked them out and, much to his surprise, found that both were fully operational. What was going ON here?

He tucked the gun in the small of his back, held snug by his waistband. The comm and cards went into a front pocket of the jacket that had once belonged to that other fox, Jared. He briefly wondered how that was panning out. Wolf was an idiot if he believed that little criminal could pass himself off as Fox McCloud. That naive plan was going to go bad real soon, might as well kit himself out to move fast for when the shit hit the fan.

He growled to himself, letting his frustration and feelings of helplessness spill over into anger, he was done being nice. He was DONE being someone's puppet! Things were going to change, starting right now!

When Panther came through the door he walked straight into a full right hook. The suckerpunch stunned the feline and he stumbled, falling to his knees, dropping two bags of take-away to the floor at his side.

Fox kicked the door closed and was quick to disarm him. He grabbed the back of Panther's jacket, dragging him face-down to the carpet. Straddled his back, pinned his arms with his knees and pressed the blaster against the mercenary's head.

"No more games! You hear me?" he pressed the barrel harder against the cat's skull.

"I want answers and I am going to get them! NOW!"

Fox didn't exactly get the reaction he was expecting. He felt more than heard the feline's soft chuckle.

"Oh Fox, how precious." Panther managed to turn his head enough to look up with one eye. "Panther had no idea you could be so rough. There might be hope for you yet." he said with a playful grin.

"But seriously. What are you going to do? Kill me? And then what? Try and escape?" The cat snorted in derision. "All that will accomplish is that you will expose the lie that is keeping you and the lady Krystal safe from Andross' wrath. Is that what you want, you want to get us all killed? Even if you DID manage to escape, even if you DID manage to take Krystal with you, you would leave us all to die here?"

"Because that is EXACTLY what will happen, Fox McCloud."

Fox grimaced. Would he? Could he actually do something like that? He didn't owe Wolf anything, did he? Or Leon, or Panther? Not to mention Pigma and Andrew, whom he hadn't even seen yet. What did he care if they got into trouble or even got killed, wasn't that his JOB, to damage Andross' forces? This could be a chance to take out the lot of them, why was he even hesitating?

Then again, if he were totally honest with himself, Star Wolf hadn't done anything yet that really hurt him or Krystal. That he didn't understand the why of the matter didn't change that fact.

But he needed answers, he couldn't go on like this! Their lives were in the balance, Krystal's life was in the balance. And he had no way of assessing their situation. When in doubt, pull out. He grimaced at that phrase that he'd first heard at the academy, at the time under very different circumstances. Where the hell did that suddenly come from? It was good dating advice but in this context it sounded like a coward's strategy. Was that it, was he bad at handling uncertainty? He bit his lip. That, maybe. And his... okay, the feelings that gripped him when confronted with Wolf. The hard knot at the pit of his stomach, the feelings of dread, of impending doom. Say it Fox, admit it. That's fear and you know it.

Was it clouding his judgement?

No. No dammit. That might be part of it but he could handle it, had done so before!

But fighting Wolf in space was not the same thing as confronting him in the flesh. In his Arwing he felt safe, he was in control. Here though? His fear was fully justified, Wolf was scary as hell. And Fox was on his turf.

"Look at it from MY perspective! Would YOU trust Wolf?"

Panther sighed and laid his head on the carpet, the tension leaving his body. His expression was thoughtful for a moment, then turned sour.

"Wolf believes in you. I am mystified as to why this is so, you clearly do not deserve it." After a breath he continued "Panther has never seen him like this. I do not know WHY he is sparing your lives, it is stupid. And Wolf is anything but stupid, so he must have a valid reason. Leon might know what that is but Panther is not as close to Wolf as he is. Does that answer satisfy you, Fox McCloud?"

The cat hadn't told him anything. He could pull the trigger and be done with him, make his escape. Save Krystal. It wouldn't be murder, they were in a war zone, in bloody conflict, in enemy territory. Different rules applied. It wouldn't be so very different from shooting down an enemy pilot and he had already done that countless times before. Right?

He closed his eyes a moment, torn. Then gave the cat a harsh shake, pressing down hard. His finger was on the trigger and he had to fight to keep his hand from shaking. He was breathing hard. Dammit didn't Panther know just how close he was to ending him?

"NO it doesn't! You still haven't told me ANYthing useful!" he growled "Part of me WANTS to believe! But I can't do it blindly, Wolf can't just leave me in the dark about everything and expect me to play along. Not when Krystal's life is on the line!"

"Talk Panther. TALK or I end it all right here, right now, I swear!"

Panther considered Fox's words. He didn't feel much fear, if his life ended here then so be it. He had had a good run, longer than most in this business. He smiled to himself. The mercenary mindset, Wolf had taught him well. At the same time he couldn't help but feel sympathy for the dapper little vulpine, it was true that he was in a hard spot, confronted with a harsh dilemma. Perhaps it was the mention of Krystal, perhaps it was the fact that Fox's feelings reflected his own incomprehension at Wolf's actions, but suddenly something clicked into place.

"I have no information for you, Fox McCloud. But something just occurred to me." he softly chuckled and shook his head a bit, sounding bemused "Well well, our fearless leader may be more subtle than Panther gives him credit for."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you not see? He must have understood your need, he must have understood that no explanation he could give would ever satisfy you, Fox McCloud. Your distrust of him is simply too big a barrier."

"Panther thinks he is giving you time and opportunity to find the information you so desire and form your own opinion. He is giving you a gun, money, and free run of the station."

"You will do your own convincing, something he cannot hope to achieve."

Panther let that sink in for a few seconds before continuing. Fox felt a chill run down his spine. Could Wolf really know him that well, could he see that deep?

"What is more, he is giving you freedom. Stay and help with the plan, or instead use that freedom to prepare your escape. He is letting you choose."

He added, with a fond smile "Hahah, he is absolutely crazy." then turned to look up, the smile still on his lips but with a more serious tone of voice "He is extending a hand to you, Fox McCloud."

"Will you take it?"

Fox grit his teeth. It made a kind of twisted sense. And was the kind of thing he should have expected from Wolf. He was gambling and the stakes were the highest ever. And what did that bastard do? Did he play it safe? No. Hell no. He went all-in.

Yeah, all or nothing, that sure sounded like Wolf effing O'Donnell.

He breathed a heavy sigh and stood up, releasing the feline. Who also stood up and wordlessly dusted himself off, holstered his blaster. Went to put the food in the kitchen. Fox was feeling slightly guilty for hitting him. When it came down to it, Panther had done his best to help him.

"Um. About that punch..."

The cat just shrugged. "Panther can handle a few love taps, have no fear." and added with a sly sideways glance, his scar very distinctive in the apartment's subdued lighting. "Some of the ladies here have managed much worse."

Panther made his way back from the kitchen, slowly walking towards him.

"I am happy that you have come to your senses, Fox McCloud. Have some faith. We will get through this together, Star Fox and Star Wolf. We are not as different as you may think."

"Now please remove your clothing and stand in the middle of the room."

Fox could only stare, jaw agape.

"What, AGAIN? What the hell IS it with you guys?"

#########

Miyu Lynx was not in a happy place.

She was twenty-four. Her career in the CDF had been stellar. She was talented, she was driven, she breezed through all the courses they put her through. She could have gone on to become anything she wanted. But her cleverness and quick wit had marked her for recruitment by the CDF's intel branch, much to the chagrin of an infantry general who had wanted her in his sniper unit. Instead though, Miyu was trained to be a covert intelligence operative.

Miyu became a spy.

Shortly after the troubles with Andross began and the Meteo asteroid belt became a staging area for his space armada, she had been inserted into Sargasso as a one-person sleeper cell. Since then she had been building on her false identity as a Kayley Snow from Zoness, increasing its credibility, making it rock-solid until it could stand up to almost any scrutiny. She applied for a job at Sargasso's local news service and was readily accepted into the small organization. It didn't take long after that to gain a reputation as an excellent all-round reporter.

And that was good, because it allowed her to get close to Sargasso's upper hierarchy. Especially Wolf and Andross' commanders like admiral Kraille. That kind of close contact, by proxy, also gave her high credibility among the lower echelons and she used that to her advantage. She was a well-known and accepted face among the troops and at social events. She was also a very attractive feline, vivacious and witty when she wanted to be. Tomboy-ish and easy to talk to, flirtatious, sexy. She was like one of the guys but with all the female benefits. To say she was popular would be an understatement.

It put her in perfect position to collect valuable information. Information that could be vital to Corneria's survival. It also put her in position to be one of the two people who, as the main media team, had filmed the major takes on Sargasso station. Including the final horrific images of Fox McCloud's murder.

Oh how she regretted that now.

It had all gone so fast. By the time she realized what was happening it was already too late to do anything. Besides the horror and shock she mused that that had probably been the worst of it all, the feelings of helplessness, the feelings of utter uselessness. She had been THERE, she had been ARMED like most people on Sargasso but she had been able to do NOTHING. Fox had died within seconds. Murdered, torn apart. And all she had done was throw up on the carpet.

Her bitterness and self-recrimination were eating her alive.

The lynx sat in a dark room in a rarely-frequented part of Sargasso's lower levels. She held a small device in her hands. Tears blurred her vision as she choked back a sob and typed a short text. The device could only handle one hundred characters per message. When she pressed the 'transmit' button it would send an omnidirectional microburst transmission to be picked up by the CDF's deep space network of military comm buoys.

With any luck one of them would be in range. She couldn't know for certain though, since Wolf had ordered Sargasso to be relocated to somewhere deeper within the Meteo asteroid belt. But this HAD to work! People were depending on her. Krystal was depending on her!

*** _F + K captive at Sargasso - Fox KIA - WOLF - visual confirmation on both - awaiting orders_ ***

She sniffled and pressed the 'transmit' button.

An hour later she was still in the same position, hugging herself. By now she was all cried out but the pain just wouldn't go away. It constricted her chest, it gnawed at her like a cancer, it turned all her thoughts to depressing darkness. She had failed Fox so badly. She had known him at the academy, hell had flown with Star Fox on occasion, they were her FRIENDS!

She had even had a crush on Fox, kind of, like so many girls back then, but had never acted on it. Well, not counting that one party where just about everybody had been drunk and draped across the furniture and each other. She sniffed, a small smile curling her lips. Fox probably didn't even remember the best BJ of his life, hah.

And now he never would, she thought morosely, her mind leading her thoughts back to the same tortuous circle of regrets, what-ifs and self-blame. Apparently she had a secret reserve of tears, she sniffed, moisture welling in her eyes.

Suddenly the device in her hands vibrated, briefly. She quickly wiped her eyes and raised the device so she could read the tiny monochrome screen.

Oh.

Oh shit. Really?

 _*** primary - terminate W - secondary - rescue K ***_

#########

While the raw feed of 'Fox McCloud's' grisly death was piped almost immediately to Sargasso's newsfeed, it took a few hours longer for the recordings to be properly edited for broader distribution.

Voice-over commentaries were inserted, key scenes were adjusted for maximum impact, close-ups and other video material were added. Audio was cleaned up, amplitudes tweaked. A runner then brought the datapac to the hangar where Andrew Oikonny was standing by in the stealth transport. The young simian had his orders and, on receipt of the package, launched his ship and carefully navigated his way to Corneria, taking a circuitous route to mask his point of departure, just in case the CDF was patrolling the area. Which they were.

His careful route took him six hours. Upon arrival he downloaded the data into three small transponder modules and shot them into low orbit above Corneria. The modules were totally passive and too small to trip Corneria's planetary defense grid. Once in their proper orbits though all it took was a simple command from Andrew for them to start transmitting, pumping their data straight into Corneria's global information network. Commercial satellites were no match for Leon's intrusion software that forced its way past their defenses. There was no way the CDF could have prevented the news from reaching the public.

It was all very well prepared and executed, very professional.

It so happened that Falco Lombardi, Peppy Hare, Slippy Toad and Bill Grey were all gathered when Corneria's web erupted in turmoil and every major network interrupted their services to report the horrific news.

They had come together to help analyse tactical information from the patrols that had been sent out to search for Fox and Krystal after their disappearance. Telemetry from the Great Fox led the patrols to the crash sites on Fichina but there was no trace of the two Arwings, nor of the pilots themselves. The patrols did find signs of enemy presence, a number of Andross' ships had recently landed, that much was clear.

Since then Falco, Peppy, Slippy and Bill had been tirelessly helping a specialized CDF taskforce to formulate high-probabilty search patterns, and to a lesser degree, rescue plans. It was frustrating, they first had to know where Fox and Krystal were to narrow down the number of potential targets but so far they hadn't found any promising leads. All they could do was spread their attention across all of Andross' known bases, starting with the larger ones. The going was slow and they all felt disgruntled at the lack of progress.

But then an hour ago they had been handed a major breakthrough, much to their relief. General Pepper had called to inform them that he had received reliable intel that Fox and Krystal were both being held prisoner in Meteo, on the Sargasso space station. Pepper had been uncharacteristically tight-lipped, he delivered his message and then cut the connection, leaving no room for questions.

They already new from the patrols' reports that Sargasso station had disappeared from its previous location, it was one of the first places they had tried scouting out.

Falco had been the first to comment, in his own no-holds-barred way.

"Oh that's just GREAT! Fucking Wolf O'fucking Donnell!" he yelled, scattering printouts across the plotting table they had been standing around. "If they're in HIS clutches we have to get there RIGHT NOW! Godsdammit where's my ship? Come ON, we have to MOVE, what are yous guys doing standing there!" and stalked towards the exit, his blue and red feathers in a huff.

His friends had been quick to intercept the avian and explain that this was a great break, sure, and they WOULD launch as soon as possible, which would be AFTER they had analyzed their Sargasso intel for best attack and extraction tactics. Flying in blind was a bad idea. A very bad idea. A GOOD plan would give them the edge they needed, would give them the best chance at rescuing Fox and Krystal, right?

Falco eventually gave in to the peer pressure and returned to the plotting table, albeit reluctantly and with lots of griping.

They'd been at it for the last hour when suddenly one of the many monitors in the room flashed a message. The corporal who was manning that station, a young dalmatian, immediately turned and informed his duty officer that the newsfeed had just warned of an upcoming urgent broadcast. In turn, the duty officer reported it through his chain of command and ordered the comms' tech to switch all monitors to display the incoming transmission.

Falco, Peppy, Slippy and Bill all turned to watch, of course.

In fact, all across Corneria faces were turning to watch viewscreens, datapads and handheld comms.

The anchorwoman who moments later appeared on screen tried valiantly to stay professional. She stared down at a datapad that she held in shaking hands, carefully reading her message while now and then looking up into the camera. She had been trained to maintain eye contact, to connect to her audience. But nothing had prepared her for something like this. Her distress was almost palpable.

"At 22:06 LST this evening a message was inserted into our global communications' network. It appears to have been sent by one of the more well-known henchmen of the exiled Dr. Andross, whose forces have recently opened hostilities against a number of Cornerian outposts in the Lylat system. We have been advised to broadcast the message in its entirety to safeguard the lives of those still in the custody of Dr. Andross' forces."

And here she looked into the camera.

"The following images are of an extremely graphic and violent nature. Viewer discretion is strongly advised." and added a personal appeal, her professionalism slipping "Please, if any children are still awake, don't... let them watch." She had tears in her eyes.

The image switched to a view of the space battle at Fichina, accompanied by voice-over propaganda. How the brilliant Dr. Andross had survived his exile on Venom and, instead of succumbing to the harsh environment and prison conditions, had grown stronger. He had fought for his independence and had been victorious, developing new technologies and building up a large force of like-minded individuals. He was now a force to be reckoned with and the battle at Fichina was but a small example of his power. Followed by images of multiple regiments of uniformed and armed soldiers, all marching in step, crisp and snappy. Flashes of large spacecraft, of a veritable fleet of them.

The next scenes returned to details of the space battle above Fichina, mostly the 'shooting down' of Fox and Krystal's Arwings, their capture and the cowardly retreat of Star Fox's capital ship, the Great Fox.

Falco watched, a cold knot of fear starting to form in his gut.

The report seamlessly segued into images of Sargasso, images of Fox and Krystal, first locked up together in their cage on the shuttle, then chained and shackled in the transport vehicle. Images of Wolf, aggressively in charge and ordering the prisoners to be brought before him. Images of the initial encounter in the office, ending with Fox being taken away while Krystal was forced towards Wolf's bedroom, with full audio of their shouts and of Wolf's cruel laughter.

Then came the final, gruesome sequence, and Wolf's bloody message to general Pepper and the people of Corneria.

Falco stared, beak open, tears streaming down his face. And shouted, breaking the shocked silence "No way man. No, NO WAY! Not Fox, this isn't happening, right?" he pointed at the screen, feathers shaking "That was special effects crap, right? This is all bullshit, RIGHT?"

Peppy shot him a pain-filled look that told Falco all he needed to know.

Bill Grey had sank into a chair and wasn't looking at anyone.

Slippy croaked and stuttered, crying, finally letting out a long high-pitched wail of anguish.

"Fox! NOOOOO!"

#########

Krystal had stripped out of her flightsuit and dried herself off before slipping into one of Wolf's way-too-large-for-her but deliciously-fluffy bathrobes, tying the belt around her slim waist. He seemed to like those, had a whole stack of them in his closet. All black of course, she thought with a small smile. She left her soggy suit and undies in an undignified heap on the floor.

Leon emerged from the bathroom.

"Robe?"

She handed him one and watched him retreat back into the bathroom, only to reappear a few seconds later to guide Wolf into the lounge. Wolf didn't look at her as he walked past. Leon didn't immediately follow but stayed with her, closing the door for a moment.

His earlier anger seemed to have cooled down to a simmer, if she was reading him correctly. Maybe this was a good moment to ask some of the questions that had been burning on her tongue since seeing the gruesome news report. Had that really only been ten minutes ago? It felt so much longer.

"Why would Wolf do something so horrible, Leon...?"

The chameleon let out an exasperated sigh. "What can I say? Wolf will fill you in when he feels the time is right. But I will say this. Your capture forced Wolf's hand. All our lives are on the line here. Not just yours."

"But... why would Wolf risk so much for us? Aren't we enemies? And why would you and Panther follow him in this? It doesn't make sense." she said, unconsciously mirroring Fox's exchange with Panther.

Leon grimaced "It's bigger than you, bigger than you know. But to answer your second question..." Here he paused, as if searching for words, then just gave up and shrugged.

"He's Wolf."

As if that explained everything.

"I need to go talk to him. You stay here. And Krystal?"

"Yes..?"

Leon struggled to say the next words.

"You did good." and slipped out, taking Wolf's holster, blaster and comm with him.

#########

When Leon returned to the lounge Wolf was sitting on the largest couch, perched on its edge and leaning forward with elbows on knees, the bathrobe stretched across his muscled frame _._ He was silently staring at the carpet, both paws wrapped around a heavy frosted-glass tumbler of what looked to be whiskey. Leon spotted the bottle on the coffee table, along with a second glass.

He carefully approached and sat down next to the lupine, laying his belt, holster, blaster and comm on the table, all still very wet. It was hard to tell Wolf's mood and in situations like these it was best to play it safe, Leon knew. No sudden moves, no pressure.

"Hey."

After a few heartbeats Wolf answered. His voice was low and sounded rough, but otherwise he seemed to have regained his composure. "Hey yourself." then continued, not looking at his teammate "What did you tell Blue?"

"Showed her the news. Told her Fox is okay. That is all."

Wolf absorbed this, well, now she's seen him for the monster he is. So be it, can't please everyone.

"Right." then falls silent again.

After a minute or so Leon quietly spoke up "You only shortened his life by a day or so." Wolf went very still. Leon continued "You know what he would have faced, in my care. You did him a favor."

Wolf was silent, paws tightening around the glass, eye downcast. There's a pain in his chest, a lump in his throat. His breathing tried to speed up but he was quick to suppress it. No, not going down that road again. After what seemed like a long time he finally replied. His voice is calm, he's back in control, he's pulled his mental armor around himself again.

He turned to look at Leon and dipped his muzzle in a shallow nod, the simple gesture conveying more meaning than words ever could have. Leon responded with a reptilian blink.

"Drink?" Wolf indicated the second glass, filling it to the two-finger mark.

Leon stood up. "I'd better pass, can't miss my launch window." Wolf stood too, took a long swig of his liquor. And acted as if nothing happened.

"Watch your back Powalski. See you in a couple of days, if all goes well." They share a look. Wolf flashed a sardonic, tired grin. "And if not, well. See you in Hell."

Leon flashed a grin back. It's understood. Then left via the secret passageway. Wolf stared down at the empty glass in his paw, then glanced towards the door to his bedroom.

#########

She couldn't take it any more. It had been over an hour and Krystal had heard nothing at all from the other room. Not that that was likely though, she thought to herself, she'd early on discovered that the doors here were thoroughly soundproofed. She tried not to the think of the reasons for that.

Getting up from the bed she bit her lip and oh-so-carefully tried the door. To her surprise it was unlocked.

What now? She couldn't just barge in without a reason. There was no knowing what state of mind Wolf would be in, it could be dangerous, should she risk it? In the shower it had seemed as if Wolf's mind had disconnected somehow. It had been disturbing, had shaken her. Okay what he had done HAD been horrible and would have traumatized a normal person - she shuddered at the memory of the images she had seen – but this was Wolf right? This kind of thing should be pretty normal for him, that's what Pepper had always told them, right? So... if he was such a heartless killer, why had it affected him like that? Something just didn't feel right about the whole thing.

On a flash of intuition she grabbed a pillow and a blanket, clutching them against her chest. Opened the door a bit further and hesitantly looked through the gap, then quietly slipped out. Wolf's bathrobe was way too big for her and its hem dragged along the carpet. It looked silly, she looked like a kid playing dress-up.

The vixen slowly made her way towards the couches, bare footsteps silent on the thick dark carpet.

Wolf was curled up on the largest couch but slowly sat up and watched her approach, saying nothing. She froze. How had he heard her, she hadn't made any noise that she was aware of?

With the blanket and pillow pressed to her chest, she spoke softly "I-... I thought you might like these."

Wolf didn't react at first, it took him a moment to understand what the vixen was doing. He's not used to small kindnesses and, to be honest, he's not very good at handling situations like these. After a few heartbeats he turned his muzzle away and as an afterthought added a quiet "Have a seat."

He had the girl in his peripheral vision. At first she didn't move and just stood there, probably weighing her options.

Krystal wants to say more, obviously, but is at a loss. Seeing no further response from Wolf she finally nestled herself in a corner of the couch, folding her legs beneath her, Wolf on the far end. She kept her posture reserved and demure, back straight, pillow still clutched to her chest.

Wolf isn't sure what to do or say either. Strangely enough the moment doesn't feel awkward, 'tentative' would be a better description. So instead pours himself a refill, takes a sip. Leon's glass is still there too, untouched. He gestures towards the vixen. "Drink up, you've had a long day".

Seeing her hesitate, he added, not unkindly "That's an order." and elaborated "Leon doesn't have any diseases."

Krystal can feel that Wolf didn't mean it as a real order, that it was just his brand of mercenary banter. But did she really want this? Not just the drink, but the invitation to... what? Talk? And where might that lead, she thought, an uncomfortable shiver running down her spine. But refuse and her only option would be to retreat to the bedroom.

And she'd better show Wolf right away that she's no push-over, can't let him establish dominance like this or it will set a precedent that will be hard to shake off later. Things were already bad enough. Don't get too complacent, she told herself, you are not among friends here.

If she wanted answers, she's left with no other option. So she leaned over and retrieved the glass, resolutely taking an un-ladylike gulp. The liquid burned her tongue and set her throat on fire. She fought hard to suppress her gag reflex.

Wolf cuts her a glance, a small sardonic smile playing along his lips "...no diseases that I know of anyway." and watched, amused, as she succumbed to a coughing fit. He said nothing and just leaned back, one leg pulled up, arm with drink resting on the couch's back. Silently watching her.

Krystal managed to control her cough and shot the wolf a venomous look, downing the rest of the drink in one go, as if to prove a point. No coughing this time, although her eyes teared up.

She bit out a reply, voice hoarse "You did that on purpose!"

He shrugged "I do everything on purpose. What's your point?"

Wolf turned his muzzle away, returning his stare to the wall opposite the couch. The large vidscreen is matte black and reflects nothing, which is just the way he'd like his thoughts to be.

Krystal, not to be so easily dismissed and not of a mind to give up, changed the subject.

"Are you okay?" Quiet voice, she's still cautious. No telling how he might react.

Another small shrug. "Why would you give a damn?" When uncertain, Wolf goes on the offensive, lashes out. In this case the words are spoken in a mild tone but yeah, he's not being very gracious.

Krystal frowned, irritation spiking.

"Oh come on Wolf!" she rebuked him "You might not be on my 'friends' list but that doesn't mean I can't care!" and in a more quiet tone "Killing someone like that... I can't even imagine what that must... do to a person."

Wolf was silent a moment, then huffed a breath. He didn't want her sympathy.

"You killed people too, at Fichina." referring to the battle in space.

Krystal flinched as if slapped, ears folded back in dismay. "That's... not the same!"

Another shrug. "Whatever." Wolf refilled his glass, then leant over towards her with the bottle. "C'mere." and Krystal rose to the small challenge, allowing him to pour another measure of the amber liquid into her glass.

"Fox is really okay?"

Wolf nodded "Yeah."

"Where... where is he..? Can I speak with him?"

Now that she switched the subject to something less confrontational, Wolf seemed more enclined to talk.

"Not just yet. Panther's probably not done with him."

"Not done?" That didn't sound good.

"Fox needs to lie low now that he's 'dead'. Andross' eyes, remember? But I can't keep him locked up for what may be weeks. So Panther is fixing that, making him unrecognizable."

Krystal bit her lower lip. Okay...

"May I ask how?"

Wolf curled his lip, a cruel glint in his eye. "Panther is dying his fur. "

Krystal's suppressed a giggle but Wolf had noticed and was already sporting a lazy smile of anticipation when she asked: "Dying his fur..? Oh my."

Now it was Wolf's turn to suppress his mirth. He failed and grinned, cutting Krystal a sideways glance. "Yep. Turd brown."

Krystal couldn't do much more than stare, eyes wide, jaw slightly parted. Wolf lost it and laughed outright, harshly.

"Bwahaha! Yeah, might have to shave some parts too!"

Krystal buried her muzzle in the pillow, smothering a snicker. Then tried to hold onto a serious, scolding expression. "Wolf, that's just childish!" But her eyes were twinkling.

Smirking, Wolf leant over to the low table and scooped up his comm. Sitting back, he composed a number and connected, while activating the comm's speaker function.

"Yo Panther."

Wolf kept his eye on Krystal, a ghost of that mischievous smirk still playing along his black lips.

"Ah hello Wolf. How goes it?"

"All is well."

"Good to hear oh fearless leader!"

Wolf rolled his eye at her.

"How are things on your end?"

They could hear the smile in the feline's voice. "Fox McCloud is a feisty one, he is. He and Panther had a slight misunderstanding but all is well now."

Wolf frowned "Huh. What kind of misunderstanding?"

"Nothing serious, Wolf. You do not yet have to search for a replacement for Panther." was the reply, accompanied by a small laugh.

Wolf narrowed his eye. Panther had just told him that it had been a close thing. Fucking McCloud. "I see." But he decided to not pursue the issue, not right now anyway.

"Are you having fun?"

Wolf can still hear the laugh in Panther's voice. "Panther is quite entertained, yes. Fox McCloud less so." A low muttering can be heard in the background. Yep, Fox didn't sound very happy.

"Are you done yet?"

"No. Panther is new to this and, well, my subject is being MOST ungracious!" In the background they could hear Fox, sounding vexed "You were feeling me up!" and Panther, in an aside while obviously holding the comm away from his maw "I was NOT! Panther simply needed to tape those parts off!"

Wolf shared a glance with Krystal, one eyebrow raised.

"Put Fox on."

Wolf placed the comm on the couch between them and nudged it closer to Krystal. She left it lying there and instead of picking it up leaned forwards to speak down towards it, resting the pillow in her lap.

Wolf quietly watched. Bathrobes weren't made to stay closed at such angles and this one, being so oversized for the vixen's slim frame, was definitely no exception. Krystal's pure white chestfur and gracious curves drew the wolf's gaze and he let his eye leisurely track her contours, caressing each swell and dip in his mind. Or closing his teeth on some parts. It's not like he can help it, he thought, can't just put a plate of meat in front of a starving carnivore and expect him to abstain. With some effort he managed to follow the conversation. Mostly. Luckily Krystal had her full attention on the comm and didn't notice his distraction.

"Wolf?"

Wolf stayed silent, letting the vixen answer.

"Fox! It's so good to hear you, for a moment I thought you'd died!"

Wolf flicked an ear in surprise at her words, belatedly realizing how it must have been for her, watching the report. She'd known about Jared, sure, but when unexpectedly confronted with the scenes of bloody murder it must have taken her brain a few seconds to catch up. And in those few seconds she'd seen Fox, her mind had been taken in by the lie. That must have been rough. And she still came after him in the shower? Fuck. He felt something clench in his chest.

Surpise in Fox's voice, and relief, but overshadowed by worry and suspicion.

"Krys! Are you okay? What did Wolf do, is he still treating you okay?"

Wolf arched a brow but let the comment slide, and instead dipped the flat canine tip of his tongue into his drink, lazy-lapping.

"Fox, relax. I'm okay, I'm safe, Wolf hasn't laid a paw on me."

Wolf grinned lasciviously and growled "Yet" at her, teasing. Or so Krystal hoped. She narrowed her eyes at him and mouthed a silent "Oh shut up". Wolf grinned wider, showing sharp teeth.

Fox missed that private exchange, of course.

"Are you sure? He's not making you say that, is he?"

Wolf frowned. That was pushing it now, just plain rude.

"Fox! Will you stop? I'm fine, I promise."

Silence for a moment, then: "Wait, why would you think I died? Wolf! What did you tell her?!"

Wolf raised both paws at Krystal, palms out, like 'hey, that one's yours' and left it to the vixen to answer. She pulled a face back at him, apparently just as loath to handle the question as he was. Well should have thought of that before opening your yap, he thought sourly.

"Um. Fox, did you see the news report?"

"What news report?"

Now it was Krystal's turn to cast a helpless gaze his way.

Wolf shrugged. But then leaned foward and growled at the comm.

"Panther. Show him."

Sounds. Talking, then a clear newsfeed audio. She recognized re-runs of the events. Silence from Fox for a while... then, as the action reached its closure...

"What the HECK? Wolf!"

"What?"

"Is... is that a fake corpse?"

Wolf bit back an angry retort and instead just replied "Don't be stupid, pup."

Then he angrily killed the connection and leaned back into the couch, frowning, slowly massaging the bridge of his muzzle. Trying to stave off a headache, it looked like.

"Nhh damn, that Fox of yours just does my head in. Fucking brat. Is he always so... annoying?"

"Mmm he's not usually like this. Not as bad anyway. I think it's your fault, Wolf."

"WHAT? How can that be MY fault?"

"Well. You..." she searched for the right words "intimidate him and this is his way of reacting to that. If you could just lighten up a bit you might discover Fox can be a very nice guy."

"Hmph. I have no need for nice guys." he grumbled, only slightly mollified "No wonder I've been trying to shoot his ass down."

Krystal let out a soft giggle. And reached for the bottle.

"Refill?"

"Fuck yes."

She poured them another two hefty shots. The drink was starting to get to her but so be it, if she wanted information she'd have to match the wolf drink for drink.

"He's not that bad once you get to know him Wolf. You'll see."

"If I don't kill him first."

"Yes. There is that of course." Krystal's tone was drily amused.

Wolf huffed a breath.

#########

The small pistol was a special model. It hadn't been particularly hard to get in Sargasso and its purchase hadn't raised any eyebrows. Hey, if a girl wanted to protect herself that was only natural, right? That the weapon held an overcharged energy cell and could only fire two shots, packing the power of a heavy carbine, wasn't any reason for questions either. If a girl got assaulted it'd most likely be in close quarters so a short-range melee gun was the sensible way to go. A pretty girl like you, you'd want to end the fight real fast huh?

The shop owner had been very understanding.

He'd have been less understanding if Miyu had told him that she was planning on blowing a foot-wide hole in Wolf O'Donnell's chest, she thought. So she didn't share that information.

"Stay safe now, miss Snow!" he called after her as she made her way out of his store, her short lynx tail bobbing attractively behind her.

It somehow felt unreal. Not that she lacked purpose or commitment, oh no, her mind was firmly on track. She knew what had to be done and had no qualms whatsoever, that whore's mongrel was going to pay. The bastard didn't deserve ANY mercy, not after what he had done. It was just that she'd never done anything like this before and still had to fully wrap her head around the idea of assassinating someone in cold blood. Hmph.

She set her jaw, resolute, an uncompromising glint in her pretty blue-gray eyes.

The slim titanium briefcase felt light in her hand as she made her way back to the office.

#########

Wolf had momentarily left the couch to get some food. He was crouched in front of the small fridge that was wedged under the lounge's modest bar. "Only have a few lonely-meals here. Your choices are General Tso's mystery meat or the Tofu surprise." He cocked an ear to listen for her answer and wasn't disappointed.

"They both sound like bad adult movie titles. And you want me to put that in my mouth?"

He barked a laugh without looking up, no WAY she had actually said that. "Oh haw! Just for that you're getting the tofu."

An off-color joke, from the always dignified and demure vixen? The drink must be getting to her, he thought, muzzle still scrunched up in mirth. Well that was good, might make the rest of the evening's activities easier. Wolf popped the tray into a small microwave unit, expression lost in thought and waited a few seconds till it dinged, then returned towards his seat, to find Krystal still sitting on the couch but now cradling his blaster in her lap. It had been lying in its holster on the low table, of course.

"Nice workmanship, if a bit heavy."

"Packs a punch."

Krystal nodded, and tapped a claw against the weapon's curved bayonet. "This blade is a bit much though..." and added, trying to make Wolf uncomfortable. "Compensating for something?"

He just laughed it off and pomfed back down onto the couch.

"Why don't YOU tell ME, Blue." he smirked "After all, you were the girl who only a few hours ago lathered down every inch of my gloriously naked body." and watched her eyes go wide, a deep blush creeping across her muzzle and cheeks. Damn she was a looker when she did the innocent-shy thing.

Krystal bit her lip and seemed at a loss for an answer. He decided to end her discomfort and continued in a more serious tone of voice. "Nicely played, Blue."

She looked up, curious.

"I get the message." he tilted his head towards the blaster in her hands "You could have shot me but chose not to."

She met his gaze, azure against violet. Nodded once in acknowledgement.

Wolf smiled and took a sip of his drink, his eye never leaving hers.

"Having said that... you don't really think I'd make a rookie mistake like that, do you?"

Krystal blinked. Had that been a test then? But she'd checked it, the power cell was full. If it was a test Wolf took one hell of a risk. Why would he DO something like that?

She silently replaced the blaster on the table.

"Mm here, have this instead of playing with my gun" and slid the small tray of food across to her, along with a plastic spork, the ubiquitous tool of all spacefaring folk. She gingerly picked the tray up and placed it on the pillow that was still in her lap.

"Bio-coded, of course." he said, giving her the answer for free.

"Oh." This was embarrassing, she should have realized that the weapon had a special safety. Now he probably thought she was naive, she thought with a sigh of frustration. Damn. Oh well no use dwelling on that now, the damage was done, cut your losses and get over it. So she changed the subject. "Aren't you having any?" She took a small bite of the food and chewed. Wasn't too bad actually. Meaty soy chunks in broth with dark green bits that were probably vegetables. Probably.

He shrugged. "Not hungry."

She gently chided him. "Come on Wolf, you have to eat something."

Another shrug.

"Already had fox." Wolf deadpanned.

Krystal stared, shocked. That was the most grisly thing ever, how could anyone even SAY such a thing? It was... it was... She bit her lip. Then put a hand over her muzzle. But it was too late. Maybe it was the timing, maybe it was the casual offhand way in which he had dropped the line, maybe it was her nerves that had been under heavy strain all day. Maybe it was all three. It started as a small snicker, then erupted past her fingers as a muffled laugh. And then she fully lost it, laughing hard!

Wolf chuckled, more at her reaction than at the joke itself. "Heh what? It's true, okay?"

Krystal finally looked up, wiped a few tears away. Caught her breath.

"Goddess Wolf, that was terrible!"

He grinned lopsidedly. "Yeah okay, that was pretty bad." he admitted and chuckled. He didn't seem very remorseful though.

A companionable silence settled between them as she ate. He watched her as she finished her meal, now and then casting a wary look his way. Done, she daintily licked her lips and stretched to place the empty container on the table, in the process retrieving her drink. Then laid her eyes on him, expectant.

Wolf's mind was elsewhere though due to the second bathrobe-failure of the evening. The vixen hadn't noticed but leaning way over like that had shown him more of her wares than was probably safe under the current circumstances.

"Wolf?"

"Oh. Right." He frowned, hastily gathering his thoughts "Okay, you've probably figured out that you're staying here with me, for now."

She nodded. "I understand that you have to keep up the pretense of holding me prisoner and ahh... abusing me as your personal chewtoy."

He winced at the way she said it, that was just a bit too close to some of the lascivious thoughts that had been plaguing him. Dammit was she doing it on purpose? He put those thoughts on a short leash and continued, hoping she hadn't seen anything in his expression. His ears were his tell, Leon had often told him. Ears and tail. Must keep a firm rein on them.

"Yes, exactly. Next few days things are gonna be up in the air, busy, have to get a lot done. I might have to leave you alone for hours at a time while I take care of business. When that happens Jeremy will stand watch over you, you comfortable with that?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Jeremy, the big wolf guard. In here, alone. With me. Oh yes why would I NOT feel totally safe?"

Wolf huffed a small laugh. Her frown deepened and she bit out a tight "What's so funny?"

He gave her a lazy grin. "It's funny that you're more concerned about Jeremy than about me, hah. I'm almost offended. And also, y'know, considering he's not exactly into your gender."

She blinked. "He's not?"

"Nope."

"Jeremy's gay?"

"Yeah."

"And... you're okay with that?"

Now it was Wolf's turn to blink. "Gods girl, what the fuck kind of intel have they been feeding you? Was that in my files, that I'm homophobic?"

His expression demanded an answer but she grimaced, loath to supply an explanation since she'd jumped to that conclusion all by herself. She had nobody else to blame, the intel files hadn't really been very informative on Wolf's love life or his likes and dislikes. She knew it was a narrow-minded thing to think but it wasn't fully groundless. As far as she could tell Sargasso's top-dog hierarchy was all male and made up of rugged individuals who had fought their way up the power ladder tooth and claw. Tough men, apex predators, not the kind she would naturally associate with... that. Wolf himself was a prime example of a male's male, a strong alpha personality with a physique to match. Flashes from the shower came unbidden to her mind and she fought to push them back down. Not now! She bit her lip.

"Ah Wolf, I'm so sorry." and looked as contrite as she genuinely felt. "I'm afraid Corneria has influenced my views more than I realized. I sincerely apologize."

He shrugged. "I'm not offended Blue, I'm just trying to understand you."

She sighed and ran a hand across her muzzle. "That's kind of you but this is really embarrassing. On Cerinia I would have never made such a narrow-minded assumption, my culture and its people were always very relaxed about relationships. If you liked someone, well, that was the only thing that mattered, basically, regardless of gender or sometimes even age."

He raised a brow at that last bit. "Within reason, I hope."

"Oh, um, yes, of course."

He smiled a ghost of a smile "Your people sound like a bunch of pagan hedonists. Running around half-naked in those li'l loincloths, doing whatever with whomever."

He was baiting her she knew but it stung nonetheless.

"Wolf! It wasn't that way at all! We... we were brought up to be well-balanced, responsible individuals."

"Hmm. So you're a good girl, is that what you're saying?"

She straightened her back, sending him a sharp look. "I'm as good as I want to be, Wolf. Or as bad." she added defiantly.

He didn't seem to take notice and took up the thread from where they'd lost it. "So yeah, I'm fine with that. Jeremy's a great guy, I trust him with my life."

She cocked her head to the side, with a small playful smile "You mean you let him have your BACK?" and had the satisfaction of seeing Wolf snort his drink through his nose.

"Mmph! Ah GODS girl, that just fucking burns!" He furiously wiped his muzzle on the sleeve of his bathrobe until he could breathe again, scowling and transfixed her with a scathing glare. It took him only a moment to calm down though, quickly recognizing the quid pro quo of the situation.

"Damn, okay, I guess I deserved that one." he chuckled ruefully, shaking his head. She was something else all right. The girl was a strange mix of chaste innocence and playful edginess, with a dash of quirky humor. Add to that a sharp mind, a strong character and a figure to die for and he was starting to worry for his sanity. How the hell was he gonna endure being cooped up in close quarters with this beauty for what may be days or even weeks? He silently groaned and cursed Fox for being such a lucky bastard. Another reason to kick his ass, grr.

Krystal saw nothing of this, he had his pokerface back in place. "You'll be safe with Jeremy." Wolf huffed, finishing the point they had originally been discussing.

"Having said that, we need to talk about sleeping arrangements."

Instantly the wary look was back in place on her pretty features, eyes narrowed, ears perked, alert for danger. It was justn't just wary, it had an edge of haughtiness to it, as if she were saying 'Don't you even DARE think of laying your dirty paws on me!'

He smirked and almost laughed, damn that was cute. He could admit to himself that he was getting off on playing this game of predator and prey, of hunter and hunted. The wolf surreptitiously drew a deep breath in through his nose, could actually TASTE the sudden spike of anxiety his words had caused. One minute they were both relaxed, exchanging easy banter, even joking. The next, THIS. Unh, that he had the power to do that to her. Fuck that was a turn-on.

Some of those thoughts must have shone through his expression because suddenly the vixen was looking decidedly nervous. Or it might have been the short silence he had unwittingly let settle between them.

"Y-yes?"

He nodded, locking his cursed thoughts away. He wasn't the type to entertain fruitless daydreams. "You get the bedroom, I get the couch."

The vixen blinked, nonplussed. This wasn't at all what she had expected, what she had dreaded.

"Um, okay."

He shrugged. "I know, not exactly what you were probably fearing but there you have it. I said I wasn't going to harm you or Fox." he sent her a piercing gaze "I may be many things Blue, most of them bad, but I'm a man of my word."

He refilled their drinks, giving her time to process the information. After a few moments she had regained her composure enough to offer a quiet reply.

"Well. For what it's worth, thank you for leaving my virtue intact."

Wolf smirked and opened his muzzle to reply with something ribald along the lines of 'the night is still young' when he suddenly realized what the girl had actually said.

"Wait, what? You and Fox aren't... you haven't... um?" he ended lamely. A light blush crept over his muzzle.

He got a small amused smile as reply.

"No Wolf, we aren't a couple yet."

Wolf blinked, confused.

"But, the way you two acted this afternoon... And everyone says you are?"

"We're just good friends Wolf. We're still dating."

"Oh." He frowned, thinking, then cut her a suspicious look. She was just yanking his chain right? "No, seriously. You screwing with me?"

The vixen didn't miss a beat and replied, keeping a straight face. "If I were, my virtue wouldn't still be intact, now would it?"

She smiled smugly at his wide-eyed deer-caught-in-headlights look, finally she 'd managed to score a point, hah! But soon took pity on the speechless lupine and continued "Aw Wolf, what's so hard to understand?" Something in his expression must have tipped her off because she tilted her head to the side and asked "Is there a problem?"

"What?" he'd found his voice again "Oh. Hell yeah there's a problem."

She arched a dainty brow. "Which is?"

He frowned. "Fox is even more dense than I thought." and scowled. "Dammit, did James drop him on his head as a kit or something?" followed by a small exasperated huff.

"Fox isn't stupid Wolf, stop that." she pulled a face and looked away "... it takes two to tango you know."

Wolf narrowed his eye.

"You're saying he tried but you weren't game?"

The vixen didn't meet his piercing gaze.

"Uhh... well... " then set her jaw and turned towards him, turquoise eyes starting to heat up as an ember of anger flared up. Now he had her blushing again and it just added fuel to the flames. "I am NOT going to discuss my sex life with you, Wolf!"

He met her angry stare with one of his own.

"Hmpf. Sounds to me like there's not much to discuss there. " He idly scratched his cheek, thinking, then asked "Is Fox a virgin too?"

"Wolf!" her blush deepened, which was kind of cute.

He shrugged. "Hey, just asking. If I'm going to send him into battle I have ta know if he has issues, right? I don't want him wussing out when I need him most, I- " his eye widened "... oh WAIT, what, is he gay?"

Krystal just stared at him, open-mouthed. Then rolled her eyes.

"Wolf, stop it! He's not a coward, nor is he gay." A small pause before she added "I think. As for virgin, I don't know nor do I care!" she pulled the pillow tighter to her chest, looking miffed.

Wolf mulled that over, watching her.

"He's an idiot."

She shot him a look. "What? Why?"

Wolf glanced down at his drink, slowly sloshing the amber liquid around and around, making a small whirlpool at the bottom of the heavy glass tumbler. When he spoke he didn't take his eye off the swirling liquid.

"You have it all. You're smart, you can think on your feet, you can fight, you're a good pilot." he turned back and looked straight at her. "You didn't cave when I put the pressure on. And I've made hardened criminals pee their pants, let me tell you." and took a swig from his drink, enjoying the punishing burn on his tongue and down his throat. "And of course, all the rest..."

He gestured with his free hand, vaguely up and down her frame. "Fuckin' drool-worthy."

He grimaced and looked away again, slightly embarassed. He hadn't meant to be so open. Must be the booze. He finished on a low note, slowly shaking his head. "Criminal negligence."

Krystal took a slow, deep breath. She'd never been called drool-worthy before. It was novel, to say the least.

"Well." she started "Any romances I may have envisioned were cut short when my planet was destroyed. Oh and then I ended up stuck in a crystalline prison cell on Sauria. And after Fox rescued me... well... things got busy alright?" She growled. Why was she even explaining herself to this ruffian? High time to change the subject. If he'd let her, that is.

"What else is on your agenda for tonight Wolf?" she leaned forward, aiming her words at him like daggers "You've captured me, chained me, intimidated me, hit me, terrified me, embarassed me, switched moods on me so often that I don't know what to think anymore!" her voice had been rising as she spoke. "What's next Wolf? Can today get any WORSE?"

The wolf's ears had slowly been flagging, folding back a fraction of an inch at each of her pointed – and accurate - accusations. Now they were all the way back, laying flat against his skull. He avoided her angry gaze.

She noticed. And understood the implications.

"What? There's MORE? Wolf, damn it, TELL me!"

He finally turned back back to her, jaw set, expression steely.

"We have a call to make."

#########

"Seriously? I can just walk out the door and go wherever, do whatever I please?"

"Of course. And I am leaving as well, Panther has a hot date and he is not going to miss it. Here." and held out the orange keycard he had used earlier. "Don't lose your way now." the cat added mockingly. "But in case you DO, my number's in your comm."

Fox stared down at the keycard in his hand, this was just unreal. He had to fight the urge to pinch himself.

"You guys are all crazy."

"Yes, I think we have sufficiently established that. Now repeat your name."

Fox grimaced. "Seriously, couldn't you have come up with something better than... ew, Jaakko Veil? What kind of a name IS that even?"

The black cat merely shrugged. "Many strange names on Sargasso, Fox. It does not sound too exotic to Panther. Also, for someone supposedly as smart as yourself, you are surprisingly slow sometimes. And you just cost me a bet with Wolf."

"What? I don't get it."

"Indeed." He moved toward the door "Bye and try not to get yourself killed. Panther will come visit you tomorrow morning." followed by "Oh and you might want to get dressed before you leave!"

Panther laughed and was out the door before Fox could reply.

Grumbling, he grabbed the fresh clothes that had been in the closet and got dressed. The only reason he was still nude was because the damn dye had to dry. They'd eaten that way, much to his embarassment, Panther bonelessly draped across the couch while he had to remain standing, holding his carton of noodles in one hand while scooping out its contents with the other. By that time he was thoroughly pissed off by the whole procedure and he'd ignored the cat, not even sparing him a look.

Then Wolf had called.

What the actual FUCK? His mind was still reeling, struggling to process what he had seen. That fox, Jared, he'd never stood a chance. Fox felt a shiver run down his spine. Was that how things would end if he ever tried taking Wolf on, tooth and claw? He liked to think he'd be able to put up more of a fight than that but a small voice kept whispering that he wouldn't stand a chance. That he'd end up exactly like that poor sap, brutally torn to pieces.

He frowned while tugging his boots on, clipped the clasps shut to get a snug fit. The more he was learning about Wolf, the more his worry and distrust intensified. A man who could do something like that had to have some seriously twisted morals. Wolf was a godsdamned psychopath. Did Andross make him into what he was or had he been rotten to begin with? It didn't matter, he thought, all that mattered was that they were in the hands of a rabid lunatic who would go to any extremes to achieve his goals. Whatever THOSE were.

The wolf had mentioned getting a shot at Andross. And that that was the reason that he had let them live. So. If Wolf was planning an uprising against Andross that was something he could get into, if only to protect Corneria and the rest of Lylat. Destroying the maniacal bastard would be so damn satisfying, he thought darkly, he would pay almost any price to be able to wrap his hands around the throat of the man who murdered his father, to squeeze so fucking hard, to see the despair in those dirty yellow eyes as the ape's miserable life ebbed away.

Yes. He'd cooperate with Wolf, if only for that.

But that didn't make Wolf the good guy. The lupine undoubtedly had his own agenda, had his own reasons for doing this. Never forget that, Fox, he told himself, never let his actions draw a veil across your mind, never let him cloud your judgement. He's just using you, using you for his own purposes and for now you have no other option but to play along.

His frown deepened. Play along, okay, but really, what were his options? Panther had said that Wolf was extending a hand by letting him have free run of the station. But maybe that was bullshit, maybe Wolf knew there was no real way that Fox could escape. If that were so then the offer was empty, just for show, and solely intended to dupe him into buying into the lie that Wolf had constructed. He wasn't sure of who exactly but at some point someone had mentioned that Sargasso was on lockdown. There, see? The point was moot, Wolf was trying to manipulate him.

Well Wolf was in for a surprise, he thought grimly. Big mistake, mister, he growled as he angrily shrugged into a maroon shirt, pressing the adhesive tabs together to close the front. You think you're smart? Then you've never played this game with a fox before.

He slid the blaster into its holster and donned the thigh-length black jacket that had come with the clothes. It was a sturdy thing and felt like kevlar or some similar tough composite. Nice. Fox turned its collar up and took a final inventory of the room. The plastic sheets and bottles of dye had been cleaned away, there was no incriminating evidence left of his transformation. Good.

He glanced at the door and inhaled a breath, steeling himself. This was it. He was heading into enemy territory.

#########

Wolf grabbed his comm. The lupine's expression had turned grim as if this were a task he hadn't been relishing, one of those things that were highly unpleasant but had to be done nonetheless. In all fairness, she thought, feeling a twinge of sympathy, he'd sure had his share of hard decisions and unpleasant tasks today. And those were only the things she knew of. What else had he had to do to safeguard his plan and with that, Fox and herself?

She shivered and berated herself. Focus Krystal, focus on the here and now. Never mind what he'd done, more importantly, what was still to come?

Wolf speed-dialed a number, put the comm to his ear and raised a finger to his lips, with a warning look for Krystal to stay silent. Who is he calling? So frustrating, he's not telling her anything!

"Put it on speaker!" she impulsively called out, then anxiously bit her lip. Damn it, that was a mistake, never order Wolf around, you know how he reacts when you challenge his authority. (him?)

He narrowed his eye at her and her heart skipped a beat. But then he relented and actually did as she'd asked, laying the comm between them on the couch as he'd done earlier during the call with Fox.

A cultivated female voice answered the call.

"Wolf?"

"Cameron. I have need of your services."

"Ooh really Wolf? That's excellent! Hold on a second while I check which of the girls are available."

Wolf shot her a glance, ears pinned back, expression priceless. Krystal almost snorted and bit her lip to stay silent.

"Cameron, whoa, it's not that kind of service!"

"It's not?" The woman sounded somewhat disappointed.

Wolf took a deep breath and forged on.

"You know I have a guest, right? She needs some professional attention."

Cameron's tone suddenly changed, was suddenly markedly less warm. "Would you care to elaborate, Wolf?"

An uncomfortable huff. "She doesn't have any clothes, just a flightsuit, need to fix that. And err, I dunno, what do girls call it? A make-over?"

"Ah I see." The woman sounded subtly relieved, Krystal noticed. Had she been worried for Krystal's safety, afraid that Wolf had something bad in mind? It had sure sounded that way. "And what kind of look are you going for, Wolf?"

He grimaced. "The thousand-Lylats question, okay. Sensual. Sexy." and after a moment's thought "Like a proper lapservant, but classy."

He avoided looking at her.

"Leathers?"

"That too."

"Collar and cuffs?"

"Mmhm."

"Muzzle?"

Wolf flicked a glance her way and upon seeing her darkening expression hastily amended what he was probably going to say, she guessed.

"Unh better not."

"Leash?"

He shrugged.

"Sure, might as well." Krystal was silently glaring by now, jaw half open in outrage.

"Hmm. How soon do you need this?"

"First thing tomorrow morning."

"Size?"

"Err. Whaddayamean size?"

"Size, height, build. My dear Wolf, you want the clothes to FIT, do you not?"

"Oh, right. Err... about as tall as Keira... but built like Sasha."

"Chest size?"

Not for the first time during this conversation Wolf asked himself what he'd ever done to deserve this kind of punishment. Godsdammit all. He darted a glance at Krystal, not meeting her eyes. It was her chest he had to look at anyways. Ahem.

"… oranges?"

"Just a moment."

The line went silent. An uncomfortable silence filled the room while the seconds ticked by. Wolf caught Krystal's gaze. Her expression had gone from outraged to coldly dignified now, with an undercurrent of sharp blades and intent to maim. He was so screwed. But he couldn't say anything in his defense while the line was still open. Fuck. My. Life.

"Back. All sorted. And we will see you at nine. Mm but Wolf..."

"Yeah?"

"Are you sure about this?" Cameron started, cautiously but firmly. "I know it is not my business and far be it from me to interfere in your affairs Wolf but... that fox girl seems like a sweet thing. Now her boyfriend is dead and... you're planning on parading her around like some abused battlefield trophy?" Her tone stopped just shy of loathing and scorn but it was there, and she knew Wolf could hear it too. Krystal was intrigued now, who was this woman who dared to stand up to Wolf?

Said wolf's ears folded back and his voice turned hard, implacable.

"That's exactly the idea, yes. You have a problem with that, Cameron?"

To her credit Cameron didn't back down. Krystal was impressed.

"Oh Wolf, don't be like that! I'm just watching out for your interests here. Trust me when I say this won't win you any respect with the people of Sargasso."

"I don't care what they think!" Wolf barked, but his expression said differently. He grit his teeth and added in a softer tone of voice "I can't afford to."

"All right Wolf. Don't say I didn't try."

"I appreciate it."

Krystal only just managed to hide her surprise. Coming from Wolf that was as much of an apology as anyone could ever expect. This Cameron woman must be high on his list of friends if she were able to take such liberties and be let off so lightly. Friends, or rather acquaintances, Krystal wryly amended, she couldn't really imagine Wolf having friends. Then she frowned at herself, what a horrible and unkind thing to think. Since when had she become so callous, so insensitive? Even Wolf didn't deserve that kind of cold heartlessness.

As much as she tried to pay attention to the conversation it was a hard struggle, the sudden reality-check had shook her up badly. This was the second time this evening that she'd caught herself thinking biased and uncharitable thoughts, first with Jeremy and now this. She was dismayed at her attitude, is this what two years of Star Fox and Cornerian culture had done to her, had she learned nothing at all? And when had her Cerinian values begun to erode so badly? What had happened to her empathy, her compassion, her kindness? They were what defined her, she had always believed. And now they felt tainted, corrupted. Sullied.

So ironic that it had taken someone like Wolf to make her realize that.

"Nine o'clock sharp then." she heard Cameron say.

"One more thing."

"What's that Wolf?"

"Bring a first-aid kit."

A cold foreboding silence filled the other end of the line before Cameron answered. The sudden shift was strong enough to pull Krystal from her uncomfortable thoughts.

"Wolf, what have you done?"

Ears folded back, Wolf looked as uncomfortable as she'd ever seen him.

"Just the usual scratches and bruises. You know how to deal with those, right?"

"Wolf. How bad is she?" Krystal winced. If words could cut...

"Cameron, it's been a long fucking day, I'll see you at nine. Wolf out." and he broke the connection, hastily beating a tactical retreat. Tossed the comm onto the table, clearly frustrated with how that had gone.

"Fuck." he muttered.

Silence descended between them.

After a few moments he dared cast her a glance. Krystal made an effort to keep her expression neutral. "Scratches?" and, with a subtle rise in her voice "BRUISES?"

Wolf shrugged, downed the rest of his drink and stood up, adjusting his bathrobe's belt.

"Part of the plan. Finish your drink and go change into your flightsuit." he growled.

"I wanna get this over with."

#########

"All right, we have to make this look convincing. It WILL get back to Andross. He has to believe that I'm... that you're not having the best of times."

"I understand Wolf, you've explained this twice already."

He was procrastinating. He knew it, she knew it.

Krystal had changed back into her flightsuit, still wet from the shower. It must be uncomfortable as hell but she hadn't complained. Not one word. And now she sat on the edge of his bed, those guileless turquoise eyes turned up at him, calmly waiting. Waiting for him to hurt her. Fuck. He hesitated. It wasn't the prospect of inflicting pain that made him stay his paw. It was... well, damn, she trusted him, that's what, she showed no fear at all, the girl trusted him with no reservations. He saw it in her eyes. Could almost FEEL it, somehow.

Was it the alcohol? Naw, she couldn't be THAT drunk. Although, to be honest, they HAD had quite a few shots. He grit his teeth and looked away, jaws clenched. "I can't fucking do this."

Her expression softened. "Wolf..." and actually reached up to lay a hand on his forearm.

"Go on. It's nothing, I know you'll be careful" and seeing his reluctance, added "You've treated me fairly so far Wolf, treated me like a fellow mercenary, respected me as a professional. Whatever else may happen, I'm grateful for that, more than you know."

He heard her words but was at a loss. How could he possibly explain to her why it was hard all of a sudden when he didn't even understand it himself? But she was right. He was being an idiot.

She cast him a sly look. "Don't go soft on me now, Wolf..."

Say what? He narrowed his eye, ears perking forward, body language shifting in unconscious response to her challenge. Oh she sure knew how to push his buttons, he briefly thought, with more than a hint of respect. Had to admire the girl for her spunk.

"Fine," he growled, "don't move," and asked "eye or lip?"

"Eye."

The word had barely left her lips before he clocked her one, hard, his fist moving in a short vicious arc. A classic right hook. At this short range it was blindingly fast and Krystal didn't even have time to register the movement. Her head snapped to the side with the force of the punch.

"Ah OW FU*!" she exclaimed, almost swearing, and blink-blinked her left eye against the sudden pain.

He winced in sympathy. Yeah that was gonna hurt, probably more than she'd bargained for but she took it like a pro. He'd been careful and her brow hadn't split, she was gonna be fine, just some swelling.

"C'mere, hold still." and he got one knee up on the bed, other foot on the floor, half-crouching by her side. His bathrobe fell open in all the wrong places but he paid it no heed, she couldn't see him from this angle anyway. He cupped her chin in his palm and used the fingers of his other hand to carefully probe the area around her brow. "No damage to your skin, eye's fine too, is already swelling nicely." He saw a tear on her cheek, gently wiped it away with his thumb.

"Okay, ready for the fun part?"

He gave her shoulder a playful shove and almost burst out laughing when she just let herself topple bonelessly over onto the bed, landing with a soft whoomph, arms akimbo. "Do your worst." she goaded him, with a small giggle. He grinned and couldn't decide if that was the bravest thing ever or just plain foolish.

"Haw. Want a safeword?"

"Do I want a... what?"

She blinked those eyes at him, placidly gazing at him over the dual curves of her chest. Wolf blinked back, momentarily speechless. She didn't even know what a safeword was? Oh gods she really WAS as innocent as a little lamb. He slowly drew a breath, counted to three, then explained.

"It's a word that two consenting adults agree to when ahh... they're engaging in activities that might be harmful." he felt a slight blush creep across his face. "So umm, no matter how hard you yell 'no' or 'stop', the activity only really stops when you say the safeword."

The vixen had been listening attentively, ears perked, and now scrunched up her cute short muzzle. Seemed to be thinking very hard. He was about to say 'don't sprain anything now' when her eyes suddenly widened in comprehension.

"OH! Oh, I know!"

He just raised a brow.

"It's a SEX thing, right?" and burst out laughing, hugging herself and rolling across the bed in a paroxysm of giggles.

Wolf rolled his eye. Was she for real? Wow. Note to self, no more than three shots of the hard stuff at a time. And no feeding her after midnight, he mentally added, just to be on the safe side.

He watched her for a few moments because, seriously, she wasn't hard on the eyes. But he had work to do. Luckily her giggling subsided quickly and she lay there on her back, chest heaving, lips pursed every time she glanced at him, on the edge of losing it again. What the hell was so funny?

"Oh for fuck's sake." he growled, losing patience, and crawled over to the intoxicated vixen, half-turning to pin her down with one knee resting on her midriff, his upper body angled towards her feet. "Okay, hold still, legs first!"

The flightsuit's fabric was stretched tight across her upper legs, pretty easy job to get some nicely-violent looking slashes in without damaging her underlying pelt too much. This was going well. He made it look convincing, going so far as to lift her legs one by one to land a few slashes across the back of her thighs.

Wolf paused and turned to lean over her "You okay?" She was panting, expression kinda strange. "I'm fine" she breathed huskily, pinning him with sultry come-hither eyes "don't stop."

Wolf gulped. Then manned up and growled a terse "Fine, brace yourself for round two, am gonna do your front" before tearing into her again. Carefully of course. This time it was her belly's turn, not too difficult to keep the damage to a minimum there either, but when he moved higher he had to be more careful. This was the tricky part, there was a danger to the curve of her breasts. Misjudge things and he'd scar her for life and that would just be criminal with a lovely set like those, right? Also, nipples were definitely a no-fly zone.

"Now REALLY don't move, I'm not kidding." Slash, rend, tear. She let out a few small mewling cries but seemed to be okay so he grabbed her hip and rolled her over. Closed a paw around the base of her tail and lifted, bodily picking her up. "Butt up!"

She yelped, head buried in a pillow. He just grinned. Hah, this wasn't as bad as he'd anticipated, was actually kinda fun. "Now don't move. Don't wanna ruin one of your BEST features!"

And proceeded to destroy the seat of her flightsuit, ignoring her muffled cries. Slash. Rip. Slash. Repeat.

Then moved on to do the same to her lower back and, higher, between her shoulderblades. For that last bit he had to lean way over the vixen's back. Her long floofy banded tail got in his face and he spat out some fur, almost sneezing. Pushed it to the side and out of the way.

He shifted forward, bumped into her body and not for the first time since he'd started the molest-the-flightsuit mission was very glad the girl was clothed. Bent over her like this, having started out crouched behind her, put him in a compromising and damn distracting position. Bad canine jokes came to mind but he resolutely forced them back down, ignoring the tightness between his legs. It wasn't helping at ALL that his bathrobe had come undone during the rough-and-tumble either, he mentally groaned. Ignore it. Fucking ignore it.

He did what he had to do and, once done with her back, shoved the vixen onto her side and pulled her towards him, dragging her across the bed. "Arms!" A few more slashes and he was done.

"aAAAnhh..." she moaned, followed by a long breathy sigh.

Wolf froze, poised above the supine form of the blue vixen. She was sprawled out under him, was panting and looked seriously dazed. What the fuck? That hadn't sounded like a moan of pain.

He cleared his throat. "Ahem, riiight. I'm done" and added a resolute "Definitely no more booze for you tonight!"

But he didn't yet move from his position, looming over her on all fours. He licked his lips. Godsdamn she looked so fine lying there like a deliciously-mauled pin-up. Totally munchable centerfold material. Not only did she look amazing, she smelled heavenly too, her normally light musk stronger now and spiking straight into his brain. Oofh. Take it easy Wolf, he told himself, stay professional, stay frosty.

And get the hell outta here before you do something stupid.

He allowed himself a moment more of staring before finally growling "Strip outta that damp flightsuit or y'll catch a cold. See you in the morning Blue.".

Krystal managed a nod and a mumbled "...nightnight Wolf..." and rolled over, letting out a small sound, curling her tail around her behind.

Blushing under his fur Wolf back-crawled off the bed and straightened his bathrobe, re-tying the belt that had slipped loose during the tussle. Felt uncomfortable for a brief instant but then shrugged. If she had caught an eyeful of him, well, she'd already seen him naked in the shower anyway.

He slipped out of the bedroom, firmly closing the door behind his tail.

#########

Left alone in the bedroom, Krystal lay on the bed and languidly stretched her lithe and supple frame. She grasped the tab at the top of her flightsuit's zipper and slowly guided it from throat to crotch, contorting elegantly to peel herself out of its constricting confines, like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis. The ravaged suit slid to the floor, discarded. She stretched again, limbs flung wide and enjoyed the luxurious feel of the expensive satin sheets against her nude body, now criss-crossed with shallow scratches.

She giggled. That had been... amazing.

Fox would never have manhandled her like that. He was always attentive to her needs, always considerate, always so concerned to do the right thing by her. The vixen sighed. She had no idea what he really wanted himself, she realized, had no idea of his desires, because Fox always put her needs before his own. It was like dating the perfect boyscout.

Wolf was many things but boyscout wasn't one of them.

The way he had forcefully dragged her across the bed, the way he had pinned her down, the way he had raked his claws across her body, leaving no part of her inviolate... unfh. She had been at his mercy. Totally. He could have done ANYthing to her and she wouldn't have been able to hold him off, had no hope whatsoever of defending herself against his feral strength.

Wolf had felt like an unstoppable force of nature, she should have been terrified. Instead she had felt strangely safe.

Not just safe but also... she bit her lip, quelling the wayward thought before she could voice it to herself, thereby making it real. She was drifting on the edge of sleep, comfortably wrapped in the liquor's numbing embrace. The scratches Wolf had inflicted on her still burned but she welcomed their throbbing heat, they felt right, they felt good. The day had been filled with challenges, with tests... and this last ordeal had felt like a final initiation, a last hurdle to overcome before being fully accepted into... into what exactly? She didn't know. And at the moment didn't care. It had been totally liberating and she let that feeling flow through her now, her body draped across the bed in naked splendor.

And Wolf...

It had felt unreal. Even in the midst of the worst of the mauling she had felt absolutely secure. If Wolf had lost control, if he had given his inner animal free rein, he could have done so much more than merely scratch her.

She slowly ran her hands down her chest, letting a small whimper escape her lips as her fingers crested her delicate nipples, felt them stiffen under her touch. Her trust had been unconditional, how easy it had been to surrender herself to him, how good it had felt. But it hadn't been a case of helpless prey offering herself up to the hungry predator. No, there had been an unspoken understanding that they were equals, there had been a strong feeling of mutual respect. Of care. That had been such a powerful feeling. Her head was still spinning at the deep and complex currents that had burgeoned from that like a wildfire. Feelings that had run rampant through her body and mind, a barrage of sensations that had been been all-consuming.

Nervousness, trepidation, anticipation, excitement. Consent. Trust. Sensuality. Arousal. LUST.

She breathed a low throaty laugh into the mattress, remembering the moan of pleasure that she hadn't been able to contain towards the end. And Wolf's reaction, confusion, embarrassment, before he had hastily backed off. Hahah, that had been precious. But for all its comic relief the moment hadn't been without danger, she realized, he could have so easily lost control and who could have blamed the wolf in the face of such wanton temptation? She had given him the perfect excuse while he had her under his paws, she had been at his mercy, vulnerable and defenseless. But to his credit, he hadn't. He hadn't betrayed her trust.

She felt a deep flush rise to her cheeks at the small twinge of regret that coloured those thoughts. It was embarrassing to admit but a part of her had longed for him to lose control. She bit her lip, bad Krystal, shame on you. What would Fox say? She lazily rolled over onto her belly and pulled her knees up, muzzle pressed into the pillows while her upper body rested on the mattress. At one point during the controlled mauling she'd been in this exact same position, she remembered, Wolf's fist bunched in her hair and neckruff, gripping tightly as he firmly pressed her down onto the bed, her butt in the air. That left his other paw free to slash precise furrows through her flightsuit, sharp claws effortlessly piercing the fabric and scoring the skin underneath.

Each impact of his paw had sent waves of heat rippling through her body, she remembered, biting her lower lip, each new smack adding its effect to the last until the combined pressure had been almost unbearable, it had taken all her will to not cry out. His rough touch had somehow reached deep inside her and set off something she hadn't known was there. Oh goddess it had felt so good and she caught herself thinking improper thoughts again. She softly moaned, tail moving sinuously from side to side. This position left both her hands free and she dreamily let them roam across her belly and inner thighs.

She'd have to find out how to unlock that wild side in Fox. She KNEW it was there, it HAD to be, she'd seen how fierce and take-charge he could be during combat! She'd find a way. And then... oh Fox. If only you were here now. She reached out with her psychic feelers in an effort to find him but could only sense strangers and Wolf's unreadable dark presence in the next room. She let out a frustrated whimper. She wanted to hold Fox close, right now, needed to curl her mind around his essence, longed to pull him into her arms, wanted him IN her!

She panted and let out a small cry as her hands found the heat at the apex of her thighs, sparking an acute surge of desire. Ahyess. She moaned and arched her back, cupping her delicately-furred mons in one palm, spreading the tender folds of her sex to accept the fingers of her other hand. Her eyes were half-closed as she immersed herself in a slowly-building fantasy of carnal lust. She tried to stay focused on Fox, fought to imagine his scent, his hands on her, the friction of his body, but as these things go her thoughts were not exclusively hers to control and the images in her mind kept shifting. Where her fantasies before only involved her brave fox there was now a kaleidoscopic jumble of males. Fox. Panther. Wolf. Dammit even the guards. But no Leon, thank gods.

She was panting hard by now, maw open, head pressed into a pillow, back arched and tail hanging off to the side, quivering, every stroke of her fingers stoking the languid and growing drumbeat that was throbbing in her lower belly. She was so slick, so wet, it was shameless, it was delicious.

In her mind's eye she was being held down by a powerful hard-bodied male, wrists pinned above her head and held there by strong paws, the back of her neck assaulted by sharp teeth and hungry tongue. She groaned and spread her thighs wider to match the image in her fantasy, pushing back against the male's powerful thrusts, each heavy impact of pelvis against her tight backside sending sharp spikes of pleasure straight to her molten core. She rode that edge of pleasure and pain, gasping, eyes losing focus, the rhythmic pound and grind, the heat, the BURN, they became her whole world as her consciousness shrank down to an incandescent jewel, pulsing faster and faster, it just went on and on and ON, relentless, animalistic, ahGODS...

She was close, oh SO close, was right about to trip over the edge into blissful release when a big paw suddenly reached down and closed itself around her muzzle. Wh-what? The unnamed male forcefully turned her head to the side, closing his maw over her open jaws, cutting off her panting breaths with a passionate kiss, so searingly HOT. His tongue invaded her mouth and her resistance never stood a chance, rolled over in submission. She kissed him back, hard, lustily moaning into his muzzle!

But oh goddess, oxygen, not enough and still the kiss went on, her implacable lover not allowing her to draw breath, he possessed her, he DEVOURED her! She felt herself panicking and struggled but it was no use, she was drowning, her consciousness shrinking ever further down until all that was left was that pure physical connection, the rhythmic shocks to her body, the deep burn, the all-consuming heat, she was close to losing it, her mind slipping, succumbing to sensory overload and the male's heady musk, she- nhahHHhh... AAHHH!

Krystal came HARD, so hard, her body writhing in the throes of the most intense seizure she'd ever experienced. Nothing had ever prepared her for something of this magnitude. She pressed her open maw into the pillows, literally screaming, HOWLING incoherent cries of ecstasy info the fabric as her essence burst in rolling waves from her loins, jolting through her body and mind, the powerful throbbing surges clenching her insides unlike ANYthing she'd ever felt before! AHHHhh goddess she was fracturing, she was unraveling and there was no stopping it! Taste, smell and touch bled together in a kind of synesthesia where she couldn't distinguish between discrete feelings anymore, all her senses crushed to infinite density. The resulting vortex sucked her in, drawing the shattered remnants of her consciousness into a riptide ride of carnal sensuality, cresting high, crashing down, again and again!

The vixen's hips bucked hungrily for what seemed like forever, timelessly moving in counterpoint to her loud cries, until she finally lay quivering, spent, her voice hoarse and only able to produce small whimpers, almost-words, as if she were pleading for her lover to stop, to please please show her mercy.

Or perhaps pleading for more.

A small eternity later her body finally stopped shaking and the spasms subsided. Exhausted and only semi-conscious, she let herself fall over onto her side, gasping for air and totally out of it, basking in the warm afterglow of the most intense sexual experience she had ever had. From deep within faint aftershocks sent lazy tremors through her luscious blue pelt.

Her conscience mind slowly made its journey back to reality. But with that return also came a feeling of dread, dispelling the warm bliss she had been enjoying only moments before. Something was very, very wrong. She hugged herself. What the HELL had just happened ?

She had lost control of her fantasy. No, worse, her control had been wrested from her, had been taken by force, hijacked by... something else. She concentrated, trying to recall what exactly had happened. In small stages it started to come back to her, hazy impressions slowly coalescing into recognizable feelings and images.

Her eyes widened and she bit her lip, hard, tasting blood. Oh no. Oh hell no.

His muzzle locked on her lips, flashbacks of sharp claws, of thick gray fur. A single amethyst eye fixed on her as he willfully deprived her of oxygen. That cruel glint of satisfaction as he watched her pupils dilate in the final moments before she came undone.

No, dammit no. The male who totally dominated her, who knew exactly what to do, who fulfilled her in ways no one had ever done before, who brought her to such ecstatic release... had been Wolf.

She stared into the room's stygian darkness. She was in so much trouble now.

#########

Wolf was alone in the lounge, blissfully unaware of the acts of sexual assault that his imaginary self was about to commit in the room next door. The lights were dimmed and, like Krystal, he was alone with his thoughts.

Her hands on him in the shower. He could still feel them, like a ghost touch that had imprinted itself on his body. It wasn't so much that he'd been naked or the fact that they had been in such intimate close quarters together, nor was it her hands roving down his chest, abdomen and even lower. That had been hella distracting, for sure, but he knew how to deal with arousal.

No, this was somehow different, different and more. When she'd been cleaning the blood from his face, her touch had been firm but delicate, her voice had been warm. He closed his eye and let out a sigh, remembering. He could have lost himself in that moment. No one had forced her to be there, she had no obligation towards him, but there she was all the same. And damn if it hadn't felt as if she really cared, as if she didn't see him for the monster he was, wasn't repelled by him. Even after all he had done, all she had seen. How was that even possible? And after, when they had talked. There were moments there where he'd felt so damn comfortable. He'd let his guard drop, he'd talked with her like he imagined you'd talk to your best friend. Fuck. They'd even laughed together. When the hell was the last time he'd laughed, in a good way?

He couldn't remember.

He growled, scowling down at the carpet. His hormones were making him stupid, he thought. That was it, that was ALL it was! So what if she's not hooked up with Fox? That didn't mean HE would ever stand a chance. But another stubborn part of him argued that no girl had ever touched him in that way. Had never made him feel this way.

He clenched his jaws, grit his teeth. This was madness, stop being an idiot, she could never feel for you. You're not in her league, you're a criminal, you're scum and she just fucking saw you tear a guy's throat out! She's seen you for what you are. She could still have a great future with Fox, or anyone else for that matter, don't go and ruin that for her. You break everything you touch.

Everything.

With a frustrated huff he pushed the damning thoughts away and curled up on the couch, ears folded back. Pulled the blanket over his shoulders and lay his head on the pillow she'd brought him. That was a big mistake, he belatedly realized, as it held her scent. He froze. Shit. He had a simple choice, either deal with his feelings or fling the damn thing across the room and avoid facing his demons, like some lily-livered cowardly pussy.

Well that was a no-brainer he thought with a small rebellious grin and pressed his muzzle deeper. If I'm damned I might as well be damned all the way. He drew a long breath, savoring the heady aroma that clung to the pillow's fabric. Ahhhhyess...

Fuck he could almost taste her. He recalled how it had felt to pin her down, to drag her this way and that across the bed as he scored her body with his claws. What was the word she had used? Chewtoy? Hawyes. And the way she had accepted the necessity of what he had to do and her totally unexpected sensual response to his actions. That had been so fucking HOT.

But she could never be his, he accepted that. Ah but those unforgettable moments in the shower... that had to mean something, right? His mind kept chasing its own tail, circling back again and again in frustrating circles. What the hell was happening to him? He let his right hand drift down below his waistline and groaned, taking a firm hold of himself.

It was just arousal, don't be stupid, it was just his body's urges acting up. He should have expected something like this he growled to himself, it had been awhile after all. Not the best of times to lock himself into forced cohabitation with a girl like Krystal, he thought wryly. Luckily he knew how to deal with urges.

He half-closed his eye and stared at the ceiling, slowly losing focus as he let his mind drift. Long, slow strokes soon got him into the right mindset and he kept a steady pace, letting the images flow freely, letting the rhythm envelop him in its warm embrace. He'd known a fair number of memorable girls but somehow all his thoughts returned to revolve around HER. He gave a small mental shrug. If that's where his fantasy wanted to take him, fine, no harm in that. It's not as if he were at risk of her ever finding out since they'd established that she couldn't read his mind.

It took no effort at all to make her the star of his increasingly erotic thoughts, he'd had her under him on his bed and hell, he didn't have to imagine what that had been like, it had happened only minutes ago. The struggle was his foreplay and, once out of her flightsuit, the action quickly heated up. He moved her into one of his favorite positions and roughly took the vixen, marked her, made her his. Ah damn it felt so real, he could smell her (probably the pillow), taste her (pillow!), felt her tight velvet grip around him, so hot it burned (damn you pillow!). He snarled and sank his teeth into her flesh (but it was the pillow).

Maybe he was a bit too rough but he was beyond caring, this was nothing more than a fantasy and he needed to get her out of his system. Which he soon did, copiously, making a big sticky mess of his bathrobe, abs, chest and throat. He lay panting, stunned, long red tongue lolling out the side of his open jaws. Damn. That had been weirdly intense, fucking epic even. It had just gone on and on and on, making him wonder when the hell it was going to stop. He grimaced, his balls ached. He must have been more pent-up than he'd realized.

He gave himself a few minutes to recover, lying there dazed and glazed, then roused himself from the couch and cleaned himself off with a dry portion of his bathrobe. Then he balled the whole disgusting mess up and nudged it under the coffee table with his foot. Grabbed his blanket and curled up on the couch, wearing a troubled expression.

That had felt really strange somehow.

Sleep was a long time in coming.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

 _Hey, Miyu's entering the story, how cool. Kudos to those who spotted her in chapter 5 ;P_

 _And ah the lonely-couch nights, I know them well. Poor Wolf heheh. As for Krystal, well, she sure seems to be warming up to SOMEthing. And Fox, omg Miyu, really? Bwahaha. That's going to bite him in the ass somewhere down the line, for sure. As for for the rest of the Star Fox crew and Bill Grey, hard times for them as they come to grips with Fox's brutal demise. I kinda feel for them. Well, except for Slippy. And Miyu, whoa there's a girl with a mission. Wolf better watch his back._

 _What's next?_

 _Wolf hinted at a talk he was going to have with Andross. And I expect he'll be up to lots of other nefarious dealings, it's Wolf, right? Like taking Krystal out to lunch. On a leash. And Fox, having tasted freedom and the joys of Sargasso's nightlife, where will that take him? And will Panther be his wingman? Will they go clubbing? And where the hell has Leon gotten off to? And what's Wolf going to do about Andrew when he gets back? Where's Pigma? What's going to happen on Corneria? I imagine Pepper is feeling the heat by now, right?_

 _And much more, probably. Like I said, it's hard to predict where the characters will take the story. I'm just hanging on for the ride._

 _Reviews and comments are welcome, as always! Don't be shy!_

 _Take care everybody,_

 _Ise_

 _Oh btw, on **sex** in this story, for those who are interested:_

 _This is me, sharing a few words about the erotic stuff._

 _Writing those intimate scenes was really really hard, no pun intended. It took me by surprise to be honest. Balance was a thing, the scenes had to be long enough to draw you in and make you a part of the action, so to speak. There had to be a believable build-up, a logical progression of the characters' thoughts and feelings that eventually lead to more heated things. And then those things needed to be explained in some detail. At the same it was important to not get lost in TOO much detail because that would affect the flow of the scene, would be a mood-killer, right? And finally, a sex scene can't be gratuitous, it has to fit in the plot, has to be intrumental in helping it along._

 _That's a lot of things to take into account._

 _To start with that last bit, did it add anything meaningful to the plot, yes, I can confirm that the scenes were as much about plot as about getting your rocks off. Something is happening between these two, something very significant to their developing relationship and, ultimately, the story as a whole._

 _As for the scenes themselves, what I like about them is how different Krystal's and Wolf's experiences were. It's the same damn scene, the actions in their shared fantasy aren't in any way different except for point of view. I admit I preferred Wolf's POV because Krystal has such an irresistible heart-shaped butt, ahem, but I digress!_

 _The point I'm trying to make is that they both experienced those moments in their own personal ways. Krystal's mind resonates to the metaphysical and she's a lot more in touch with her feelings than Wolf is. Therefor Krystal's scene is full of elaborate descriptions and allegory. She experienced it as something very complex, good and bad, sweet and sour, it took her on a wild ride and made her understand things about herself that she hadn't envisioned before. Wolf's take on things were more typically male, more simple, more basic. Wolf, well, he just jerked himself off and it was surprisingly good._

 _Aw sorry, that's not totally fair to Wolf. He actually did his own share of soul-searching. I just can't resist messing with him, my bad. Anyhoo, onwards._

 _I hope I kept things tasteful enough while not losing the erotic impact. I don't mind the occasional mop &bucket romp in a story but to be honest, the most stirring stories I've read so far achieved their intended effect without having to slip into the ick-zone. As for having managed to strike a readable balance between pace and detail, oofh I dunno, I'll leave that up to you to decide. _

_Did you enjoy reading it, did it grip you, did you get a rush out of it? Did it make sense? Did you ruin a bathrobe? =P_

 _I sure hope so._


End file.
